A Grim Tale of Reapers
by CalamitasWrath
Summary: Isshin Kurosaki died years ago, and Ichigo has been living with his mother ever since. Life seems normal for him, until one day, he meets Rukia and is thrown into the spiritual world. Under the tutelage of a very shady shopkeeper, Ichigo becomes a shinigami. But things are not as simple as they initially seem… AU retelling of Bleach, major changes to canon plotline. IchiRuki.
1. Strawberry meets Death

**Author's Notes:**

First off, to all potential readers: Thank you for checking this out.

Now, what exactly is this fic supposed to be, you may ask? Simply put, this is an effort between me and my beta-reader – or in this case, co-writer – Greatkingrat88 to rewrite the entire Bleach series into something better, because, in all honesty, everybody should know by now that Bleach started out as an interesting series with a lot of potential, that was ruined by Kubo's need to put in as many shonen stereotypes as possible. So, are we saying that this is Bleach _should _have been? No. This is merely an attempt at showing at what Bleach _could _have been, and I do quite hope that we are coming up with is entertaining.

So, without further ado, let's get to the actual fic. I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

Kurosaki Ichigo, nineteen years of age and the perfect mix of delinquent and model student, walked down the street. It was nearly nightfall, but he walked at a leisurely pace- he felt at home here, and he was confident he could beat the everliving snot out of any thug or robber that might try his luck in this neighbourhood. The hubris of youth was indeed strong with the young Kurosaki, though it was accompanied by a strong sense of empathy (though hidden under the typically male crust of emotional distance).  
As he walked, he thought long and hard. He was nearly an adult- still in school, but working life just around the corner. He had good grades; he could be a lawyer, a real estate agent... something better than the average salaryman's life. Perhaps even a doctor, such as his late father had been. The future wasn't quite line out for him- his mother was rather permissive in that regard, having stated that he should do what he wanted the most himself- but he would have to make some big choices fairly soon.

Sighing, he flung his jacket over his shoulder. It was a summer night, and not really cold enough to wear it yet.

"Hi, mister."

"Hi, you." Ichigo said softly. It was here, at this sidewalk, that a small girl had died and left behind an uneasy spirit. It was here he set up flowers in a glass jar, just for her sake.

Seeing ghosts, that too was part of his everyday life. For the longest time, he had thought himself schizophrenic, delusional. He had not yet dismissed the possibility, but he didn't want to be a bother- maybe when his delusions hurt people around him.

"Your mother won't be angry you talked to me?" The girl said shyly.

"What mother doesn't know, doesn't hurt her." Ichigo grunted. His mother was a wonderful person, but not very open to ideas of the supernatural- the one time he had mentioned that maybe he had seen a ghost, she had thrown a fit. He had gone to bed without supper that night. Some atheists were just like that, he figured. Still, it would not hurt to humor this little figure- nobody was harmed, and she was both helpless and alone.

As he reminisced about this event, Ichigo noticed two thugs coming his way. The two of them seemed slightly drunk, and paid no attention to Ichigo as they passed him. Not wanting any unnecessary trouble, he did his best to ignore them, too – until one of the two knocked over the vase in the passing.

As if he were acting out of instinct, Ichigo grabbed the young man's shoulder, and turned him over.

"He? Whaddya want?" The thug asked irritatedly, but with a distinctively smug look on his face.

"You knocked this over. Would you mind putting it back up"? Ichigo requested calmly, but not without an underlying threat in his voice. He still wanted to avoid a conflict – had he not, he simply would have punched him in the face.

"Why the hell should I do that?"

"This is a memorial. Don't you have any respect for the dead?" Ichigo retorted, the threat in his voice now getting more blatant.  
By now the other thug seemed to have realized that Ichigo was completely serious about this, as he began to urge his friend to comply. "C'mon man, just do it..."

After looking back and forth between his friend and Ichigo for a moment, the first thug then finally decided to obey, and put the vase back up. The two of them left the scene as quickly as possible after that. Once they were gone, Ichigo let out another sigh.

"Thank you for help, mister!" The spirit of the little girl said, having watched everything silently.

"Don't thank me. I'd have done this even if you weren't here."

"But I still want to thank you... is there anything I can do for you?"

"Just go to heaven already, I can't look after you for the rest of my life..."

And with that, Ichigo left, too. By now, the sun had already set and the hour was growing late, so that he decided to head home.

Leaving the pleasant night, Ichigo at long last found himself at home. Situated above a clinic, it was a pretty sizable apartment- they had not done terribly with their mother's salary. Quietly opening the door- Yuzu would be sleeping- he walked in, closing the door behind him.

"I'm home." he said quietly.

"You're late." Masaki said, her voice mildly chiding.

"I took a walk through town. I... I guess I needed some time to think." Ichigo shrugged. "Just a walk, that's all."

"You didn't get into trouble, did you?" She scoffed.

"No, mom." Ichigo reassured her. Somehow, she had yet to wrap her mind around the fact that he not only knew his karate, but had a tough enough reputation that trouble had a way of avoiding him, on account of him being just too much trouble. In her eyes, he still was that seven year old boy, needing a scraped knee bandaged. He didn't mind it terribly.

"Do you need something to eat?"

"No..." Ichigo shook his head. "I'm fine. I'll just study a bit and go to bed." He stood quiet for a few seconds, and took a deep breath. "How is Yuzu?"

At the mention of his little sister, his mother seemed to deflate. Looking tired, she said, "She... she hasn't gotten better. If she doesn't improve by tomorrow, I will have to take her to the hospital."

Ichigo nodded. It was hard- he was so used to the idea of protecting others; his friends, his family... but there really was very little protection a fist could offer against a malevolent germ. Quietly, he walked up to his room. He dropped his jacket on the floor, and his bag on his bed. Taking out his physics text book, he sat down- he was curious to know more, more about how everything worked, and it didn't hurt to get informed. These courses were not easy, god knows.

Suddenly, he heard a noise. The window had blown open. Which shouldn't be possible; the windows were of the sliding variety. Looking out in the night, Ichigo saw nothing. Finally shrugging, he was just about to shut it, when suddenly he saw a small, dark figure jumping, coming at him, right for his window.

In shock, Ichigo fell out of his chair, as the figure landed on the floor just in front of him.

Said figure turned out to be a young girl, apparently in Ichigo's age, with shoulder-long black hair. She was wearing traditional, black japanese robes, together with fitting sandals, and a sheathed katana at her side. For a moment, Ichigo considered the possibility that she, too, could be a ghost, but dismissed the idea when he saw that she looked completely healthy – with a ghost, Ichigo could always see what exactly caused their deaths, be it them being covered in blood, or just looking sick.

Which however still did not explain how and why she had jumped into his room.

The girl, meanwhile, paid no attention whatsoever to Ichigo, and instead looked around the room with a focussed expression. "It's nearby..." She mumbled, obviously thinking aloud rather than talking to Ichigo.

Meanwhile, Ichigo had recovered from his shock, and gotten back up. Without much fuss, he approached the girl, and smacked her hard on the head. Drunk thugs were one thing, but a female thief that jumps through windows and looks like she's going to a costume party was another; a thing that completely justified the direct use of violence, to be precise. "'Nearby' my ass! Next time you break into other people's houses, at least make sure that nobody's at home!"

Being hit completely unexpected, the girl just turned around at Ichigo, and stared blankly at him, while holding her head. When she finally did speak, her tone could only be described as the textbook definition of "confused".

"Wha- uh... I mean... you can see me?" She stuttered.

Great, Ichigo thought. Not just a thief, but a mentally ill one who believes that she's invisible, too. Just what I needed...

"Are you mentally ill?" Ichigo asked. "No wait, I know- you're one of those hardcore cosplayers who take the act way too far, aren't you? Look, it's good that you have a hobby and all, but you can't break into people's homes. That's going too far." Taking a step towards his visitor, Ichigo moved to take her out, away. You never knew what an otaku might do.

But the moment he reached out to grab her, the strange girl pointed two fingers at him, shouting, "Bakudo no ichi: Sai!"

Ichigo's first reaction was to laugh- she had actually tried some spell, as if she was actually in some anime- but that reaction was immediately replaced by an angry swear, as his arms were forcefully twisted behind his back by some unseen force. Ichigo, surprised that it had actually worked, keeled over.

"What the hell?" He growled. "What did you do?"

"Calm down, and I will explain." the girl said smugly. "You see, I am a shinigami..."

One explanation later, Ichigo sat up- arms still secured behind his back- looking at her with the eyes of a man who isn't really as surprised as dramatic convention demands of him.

"So basically, you are a psychopomp spirit who helps souls pass on, and you are part of an organization based in the afterlife- who all dress like samurai for some reason- and you are possessed of mystical powers with which you battle malevolent spirits who failed to pass on?"

"You don't sound very impressed." The girl said, sounding annoyed. "Aren't you even going to protest that this is impossible?"

"Oh, I believe you." Ichigo said, nodding soberly. "I am going insane anyways; it's about time my hallucinations started being interesting."

Giving him a strange look, the girl continued, "...anyway, I am hunting a hollow-"

"Big monster spirit thing, right?"

"Right."

"What is this, Yu Yu Hakusho?"

"What?"

"Never mind." Suddenly, the realization struck Ichigo. "My family! They- they will be safe, right?"

"I will take care of it." The girl nodded. "They are drawn to strong spirit energies, like yours, so it will be near- but I'm capable enough. Relax."

But as if to prove her wrong, the instant she finished her last sentence, a loud scream could be heard from another room, coupled with an even louder rumbling noise; with the scream definitely coming from Ichigo's mother.

Instantly, Ichigo's attitude changed. If this was still a hallucination, it just went right past the point of being "interesting", and deep into the territory of being "frightening". He started to fight against the force tying his arms behind his back with all his strength, to be able to actually do something.  
The self-proclaimed shinigami, meanwhile, looked back and forth between Ichigo and the door, a stressed expression on her face. "Gah, don't fight against it! You'll only exhaust yourself! And besides, there isn't anything that you can do against a hollow! Just stay here, I'll deal with this, and unseal you once I'm done!"

She was already on her way to the door, when suddenly, Ichigo rushed right past her, his arms free, and a baseball bat in one hand. In her ensuing surprise, the girl almost stopped running. "He broke free?!" She wondered aloud, while following him. "How can a living human have that kind of spiritual power?"

There was, however, no time for wondering: Both Ichigo and the girl had made their way to the living room, where the noises they heard originated from. What Ichigo saw there could have been straight out of a nightmare: Standing in the middle of the room was a huge, gray humanoid creature with unnaturally long arms, and a round hole in the middle of its body. Instead of a face, or even a head, it had something that looked like a white mask with a demonic, fish-like face.

But the creature's appearance alone was not what made it nightmarish to Ichigo. No, what made it truly terrifying was the fact that in one of its enormous hands, the monster was holding Ichigo's mother! Inside his simple teenage mind, something snapped. They say that if a person is angry enough, he 'sees red'. Reality is that instinct, pure raw emotion, overrides all of your critical faculties. Ichigo wasn't rich with those to begin with, and this was his mother- the person who had raised him, cared for him all his life, she was everything.

"LET GO OF HER!" He roared, charging the creature with his baseball bat, heedless of any danger. He swung down hard on the creature's arm, and,  
Reality ensued. Righteous anger is a powerful force, but pointless if the opposing side is plain superior. With a motion like he was swatting a fly, the creature walloped Ichigo, sending him tumbling into the wall.

The shinigami looked on with fright. That dumb, dumb human! Drawing her sword, she prepared to face the hollow. The boy's little move had at least accomplished something: It had let go of the woman- his mother- and now focused its attention on Ichigo. Apparently noticing this, Ichigo cried,  
"You want me? Come catch me!" Jumping out the window, Ichigo managed to land on his feet, and staggered down the street. The hollow followed suit, no doubt to feed on the most delectable prey in the household. Almost feeling insulted, the girl pursued the monster. Once out on the street, she hastily tried to assess the situation: A lower level hollow, hunting a very powerful but pretty helpless human boy, almost caught up to him now. She, a shinigami of considerable power, capable of slaying it- but not of saving him. Unless she did something really stupid and reckless, that is.

Ichigo fell over on his back, the creature towering over him. Was this it? About to end up monster feed at nineteen years old? Well… if his mother lived, it was a decent trade. The monster raised its hand, and then-  
Then she was right there, taking the hit. It was brutal and quick, and in an instant the hollow had stepped back. It had lost an arm, but the shinigami seemed to have gotten the worst of it; she was barely standing up, bleeding heavily from multiple wounds.

"You…"

"Idiot." She snapped. "This is what happens when you all meddle, foolish mortals!"

"Can we beat it?"

The girl blinked. It was a stupid question, so stupidly optimistic that it hadn't even entered her mind.

"Can we?"

"Well, there is a way-" No. As soon as the thought hit her, she dismissed it. That was illegal, enough to get you a death sentence. Then again, she could be dead now or dead later.

"What way?"

The shinigami took a good look at the young man. He certainly seemed physically capable for taking over for her – his unnatural spiritual strength would help. "You become a shinigami. I pierce the middle of your chest with my sword, and insert a part of my strength into you. That way, you'll be able to fight this hollow on equal terms. There is still a considerable chance of this failing... and if it does, you die. What is your choice?"

Ichigo looked back and forth between the shinigami and the hollow, which was now slowly making its way towards them.

"So its either a certain death, or only maybe dying?" He started grinning. "Then I'll go with the option that actually offers a chance for survival. Let's do this, shinigami!"

The girl, too, started smiling. "It's not 'shinigami', it's Kuchiki Rukia."

"Fine... I'm Kurosaki Ichigo."

For just a moment, Rukia's facial expression changed. Was she surprised? Realizing something? Ichigo couldn't tell, and he did not have the time to think about it, either, as Rukia went right ahead and stabbed him.

The blade slid through Ichigo's chest with ease, until nearly a foot's length of it jutted out of his back. For just a second, nothing happened, and Rukia wondered if the spiritual overcharge had stopped his heart. For just a second, Ichigo felt nothing and wondered if he had actually died.

But just after that one second passed, it all changed. Reiatsu emanated from Ichigo's body, almost explosively, and the discharge sent the hollow staggering backward. On his body, a black kimono just like the one Rukia wore. In his hand, a sword of oversized proportions. Rukia gasped- this was much more power than she had expected. No normal human should be capable of this kind of power. Suddenly, she realized her power had been drained almost entirely; she was weak and fragile. Ichigo... was not.

"You know, if this is a hallucination, it's a damned good one." Ichigo said cheekily. The hollow roared, recovering from the initial shock. Raising its good arm, it stepped forward, surging - and suddenly, it had no arms at all. He had swung his blade like an amateur, straightforward and with force, like it was an axe, but it had hit home and the hollow's arm had come clean off. The monster roared, and took a step backward, confused.

"You know, I kinda wish I knew how to do this properly," Ichigo spat, stepping forward, "because if I did, I could really hurt you and make you wish you were dead. Deader. Pain. Misery. Uh, bad things are going to happen to you, that's my point."

"Hit it over the mask!" Rukia cried. "Breaking the mask always purifies them!"

"Right!" He readied his sword. "This one's for touching my mom, you bastard!" The hollow tried to step forward, to ram Ichigo, but he hopped up and kicked it in the chest. In a normal world, it would have sent him on a short trip to asphalt meeting face, but in a shinigami's world, spiritual power trumped all else, and Ichigo had it in abundance. The hollow staggered back, and Ichigo charged, sword raised. Though swung wildly and madly with all the expertise and subtlety of an axe murderer, the blade smashed into the monster's mask, cracking it solidly. The hollow gave a roar, and begun to disintegrate.

Ichigo was already about to get back up, and make a comment about how easy it was to defeat the hollow to Rukia, when a sudden feeling of extreme exhaustion overcame him. Unable to resist it, he passed out.

When he woke up again, the first thing he felt was an irritating headache. Then it struck him: He was lying in his bed, and his alarm clock was ringing. Still sleepy, he slowly got up, and then remembered what happened last night. Instantly, all tiredness fell away, and he rushed out of his room, towards the kitchen. He had to check if his mother was alright after the hollow attack.

When Ichigo however got into the kitchen, he found his mother already sitting at the table, drinking a coffee as if nothing happened. Having noticed Ichigo, she looked up. "Oh, good morning, Ichigo. Are you alright? You look a bit upset."

"Uh, er, I'm fine, I'm just having a bit of an headache. Nothing too bad." He replied, trying to calm down. His mother was obviously fine, and didn't seem to remember anything... Does that mean that the events of the last night were just a dream, or an hallucination? I should have known... Ichigo thought to himself with a scowl, as he sat down to eat breakfast.

After he finished eating, Ichigo changed his clothes, gathered his things, and then left for school. On his way there, he once more thought about his hallucinations. After the events last night, he was starting to seriously consider consulting a therapist. While definitely getting more interesting, his hallucinations where also getting more elaborate and absurd. Ghost samurai fighting evil spirits... that sounded weird enough to be the premise for an anime.

Heading on down for class, Ichigo shook off all notions of ghosts, demons, assaults on his family members and asparagus. He was fairly certain that the last part was responsible for his bad dreams; no more late night snacks for him.

And then, rather like a train colliding with his face at full speed, his new-found illusion of normality, relaxation and sanity shattered, because sitting next to him in physics class was that girl from yesterday, Kuchiki Rukia. She was... real. And apparently, hitting it off with his friends.

"Hey Ichigo!" Keigo, one of Ichigo's friends, cheered, "Meet Rukia! She's an exchange student from Germany who's having her first day here!"

"...hi." Ichigo said, wishing there was something to inflict violence upon, because this wasn't fair.

"Nice to meet you for the first time, Kurosaki-san!" Rukia said brightly. "I hope we will get along well in the future."

""Isn't she cute?" Keigo droned, positively drooling.

Well, the future was going to be... interesting, at the very least.


	2. Introductions should come after a fight

Do not pay attention to this. These are just a few words to substitute the lack of Author's Notes for the beginning of this chapter.  
Co-written by Greatkingrat88, we (luckily) do not own Bleach, blah, blah blah.  
Oh yeah, and any recent revelations in the manga are not canon for this fic, unless they aren't complete and utter nonsense for once - which by this point however, seems rather unlikely.

* * *

Since lessons were about to start, Ichigo did his best to ignore that intrusion into his illusion of normality that called herself Kuchiki Rukia, and headed for the classroom – which turned out to be harder than expected, since she followed him into class, even going as far as to take a seat next to him. So, seeing as the use of violence was not exactly the best way to make his anger known in a class room – or in general, for that matter – Ichigo did the next best thing to vent off at least a bit of his frustration: Hissing his exact issues with the current situation at Rukia.

"What are you doing it here? I thought my involvement in your entire evil spirit hunting stuff ended with me finishing that one thing!"

"Well, it technically would have, if it weren't for the fact that for whatever reason, I lost all of my powers to you, instead of just a part of them. So for the time being, I'm stuck in your world, and you'll have to do my job!" Rukia retorted, appearing to be in just as bad of a mood as Ichigo.

"Are you kidding me?! There's no way I'm going to do any of this! I'm way too busy to go spirit hunting! I have my family and my education to take care off! And besides, what's with this shit about you being an exchange student?! This is college! There's no exchange students, only people studying abroad! Properly think out your excuses before you use them, damn it!"

"Hm. I suppose I gotta change that then. Your friend accepted it, though."

"No surprise there. Keigo will believe just about anything that a girl tells him. But that's besides the point! There point here is that-" At this point, the teacher entered the classroom, and all the conversations that had been going on died down. Not wanting to draw in any unnecessary attention, Ichigo interrupted himself. "We'll continue this after the lesson!"

And so, about an hour later, Ichigo and Rukia found themselves on the school's roof, where Ichigo hoped that nobody would interrupt them. Since Ichigo had been focussing on the lesson instead of the problem known as Rukia, he was now a lot calmer, and able to refrain from loudly screaming at her.

"So how do we fix this?" Ichig said, keeping his voice calm. "I hope I'm not stuck being the spiritual hunter of evil monsters forever- I'm not cut out for that. I'd rather be the hero of a courtroom drama series, if it's all the same to you."

"Your objection has been noted." Rukia said dryly. "Don't worry- it's not permanent. I just don't know how it happened just yet. You have some amazing reiatsu for a human, you know that?"

"Don't know, don't care." Ichigo said dismissively. "Look, I've got two sisters, one sick, and a mother who's breaking her back working hard so we can all have a decent education and make something of ourselves. I'm going to become a lawyer, make plenty of money, and make sure I can give something back. I'm not cut out to be a hero, and even if I were I wouldn't have the time."

Rukia stayed quiet a while. "Follow me." She said, at last.

"It better not take long. Classes'll start up soon enough."

She led him just outside the school grounds, to a small playground.

"What now?" He asked irritably.

"Wait for it." She said. And there, a small ghost child manifested, sitting on a swing. It was a pathetic sight- she had on a bloodied dress, and one eye was missing, and despite all of this she was smiling. "Thousands like her," Rukia began, "every day. Lost souls who fail to pass on, who need our help. Without us, they become consumed by their regret- or by hollows. Look at her, Ichigo. Does she not deserve an afterlife too?"

"Any argument that begins with an appeal to emotion is, in my experience, usually one lacking a solid basis." Ichigo retorted. "Your point being?"

"You can help her."

"It's not my responsibility." He shook his head. "I know that every day, something like four to six thousand children die, and I expect that you do too. Am I supposed to constantly feel upset about it? If I did, I'd get nothing done. It's not that I don't feel for her, but it's your responsibility- you, and your organization, whatever it was called- not mine."

"How can you be so cold? What made a boy your age this cynical?"

Ichigo shook his head. "Not cynical. Just a realist with his priorities set."

There was a loud roar, coming from nearby. Around the corner of the nearest building, a masked monstrosity, walking on long legs like a spider, approached.

"Well, mister realist," Rukia spat, "here's a chance to test your principles. Walk away and let her be eaten."

"That's not-"

"Only you can save her, Kurosaki Ichigo." Rukia said coldly. "You may not like being the hero, but sometimes, you just have to be. So what will it be?"

Ichigo looked quickly back and forth between the ghost girl and the hollow, a grim expression on his face. "I hate you."

Rukia grinned. "I know."

"So what do I do?" He asked with resignation.

"Right now, you do nothing. Just wait for a moment!" And with that, she pulled out a fingerless glove with a weird skull symbol, and put it on her right hand.

Before Ichigo could even start to wonder what she was going to do, she hit his chin with the palm of her gloved hand, flinging his head back.  
This was obviously not helping Ichigo's mood at all. "Argh! What the hell was that for?! Do you have any idea how much that-" Ichigo interrupted himself when he realized that he was standing over his own, apparently unconscious body, dressed in the same kind of clothes as Rukia had been wearing them when he first met her. "Oh. So that's why."

"I am glad to see that you understand. Now, if you don't mind, there is a hollow that needs to be taken care of."

Without another word, Ichigo turned around, and charged at the spider-like beast, which just now had caught up to the ghost child, and prepared to devour her. Before it could however even begin doing that, Ichigo had reached the monstrosity, and started attacking its legs. Having not expected to be interrupted during its meal, the hollow already lost one of its legs before it even realized that Ichigo was there. Irritated over the sudden loss of a limb, the creature turned around towards Ichigo, only to be greeted by a sword to the face, which finished it.

As the hollow disintegrated, Rukia walked up to Ichigo, still smiling. "Good job! I knew that you-" She began, before she was loudly interrupted by Ichigo.

"Shut it! I am not doing this because I am accepting any of this substitute business. I am only doing this to repay my debt to you. You gave me the power to protect my family, so I will help you out with your shinigami job for now."

Rukia smiled. "I knew you would come around."

Ichigo looked at her with a glare that would have made a basilisk nod approvingly. "Don't think I don't know how manipulative you are."  
"Manipulative?"

"Cut the crap. You didn't make a convincing case, you just appealed to my better nature and put me in a do or die situation, and now I'm stuck."

"By your own free will. Odd how that can make you stuck." Rukia said sarcastically, although sounding satisfied.

"I'm watching you." Ichigo said, making a face. "And I don't trust you, either. I'm doing this until you can do your job again, and I'm not letting it get in the way of my studies. Got it?"

Rukia nodded. "Got it."

"So, is there anything else I need to do before I can get into my body? Do I still need to play some song of healing on a magical flute, so that this hollow won't come back to live or something?"

"Well, there is something that you still need to do..."

"And what'd that be?"

Rukia pointed to the girl that the hollow had attempted to eat, who was looking at them with an uncertain look. "You still have to perform the soul burial for her."

"...Soul burial?"

"You allow her to pass on. Leave this world, and get into the afterlife, Soul Society."

"Oh. So how do I do that?"

"Simply touch her with the hilt of your sword."

A bit uncertain, Ichigo walked over to the ghost girl. She seemed anxious, but did not back away when Ichigo got to her.  
"I will... be able to move on? Be no longer stuck here?"

"Yeah... you can leave now. It's over." Ichigo said, trying to sound reassuring.

He then kneeled down, and did just as Rukia had told them. Immediately, the girl began to become enveloped in a bright blue light, until her features could no longer be made out. The light changed its shape, becoming a small sphere, which then quickly flew into the sky. As the light began to vanish, Ichigo though he could he hear a weak voice saying "Thank you...".

Without turning around to Rukia, Ichigo started talking. "That Soul Society place of yours... what is it like?"

For just a moment, Rukia hesitated, and then said: "It is a beautiful place, where you don't have to worry about anything, and you never grow hungry or thirsty."

"So... it's like heaven?

Again, Rukia hesitated a bit. "It is as close to heaven as you can get."

"Ah... that's good, I suppose."

"So..." Ichigo began, now finally turning around to face Rukia "How exactly do I get into my body now?"

"You just lay down into it."

"Uhh... OK?"

Following the instructions, Ichigo got back into his body, and the two walked down the street, back towards the school. "Your kendo is terrible, by the way."

"I've two hollows killed, haven't I? Besides, I never took kendo. I know my karate, but I'm new to swords."

"I can tell. It's like watching a lumberjack chop wildly at a tree."

"Well, maybe I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay." Ichigo muttered. "What do you expect?"

"I guess I'll have to teach you the basics." Rukia nodded. "Yes- I think we'll have to, for your own good. A sword can really hurt its owner if not wielded properly, and not all hollows will go down by you just flailing around that sword as if it is a flag."

"It's not that complicated. Swing, hit, kill."

"And that's why you are a rookie and I'm- well, not a master, but I might as well be compared to you. You're learning kendo."

Ichigo grunted. So much for having free time.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Once back at school, Ichigo grumbled inwardly. His friends would be there, and doubtless they'd be asking what he had been off doing with the new girl. Students, whether at middle school, high school or university were horrible gossips- they would probably make assumptions, and then build rumours from the assumptions, and before you knew there'd be enough of a love story to fill a very thick book.

"You look troubled, Ichigo." Rukia commented. "But then again, you seem to always do that, so it's hard to know if you really are."

"My stupid friends'll ask stupid questions, that's all. No problem."

"I could always tell them I'm a lesbian." Rukia said jokingly.

"Oh, I wouldn't do that." Ichigo said cryptically.

"Heeeey, Ichigo!" It was the stupidly energetic cheer of the ever goofy Keigo, whose friendship with Ichigo was probably owed to him never actually noticing how often Ichigo was in a bad mood, or how often he looked like it.

"Hey." Ichigo grunted. "So what's next-"

"Heey, you're that cute new girl!" Keigo said happily. "Nice to meet you, Kuchiki-san!"

"Nice to meet you, Asano-san." Rukia said, the very image of sweet, restrained feminity. She sure could act...

"Don't bug her overmuch, Keigo." It was Kojima Mizuiro, one of Ichigo's more sensible- that is, far less loud and the kind to realize when space was needed- friends, and one adept at charming women. Well, he could have her... "Anyways, we've got civil legal theory next, so we better hurry up."

"Man, you're so lucky!" Keigo groaned. "Ichigo, already getting chummy with this new girl... didn't know you had it in you."

Yes, of _course_... well, it beat being called gay for not chasing skirts at every possible opportunity, at least.

"Shut up." Ichigo said. "I went for a walk, and I met her on the way back. That's all there is to it."

"Sure." Keigo said. "I believe you."

"Thank you." Ichigo said, feeling relieved. His relief lasted about five seconds, because, "I can dim the lights and sing you songs, full of saaad things," Keigo sang, his voice being obnoxiously misfit for his song of choice. "We can do the tango just for twooooo,"

Resist urge to kill Keigo and his music taste. Check. Or not. Ichigo made a fist.

"That's enough now, Keigo," Mizuiro said smoothly, pulling Keigo away down the hall. "He's just teasing, Ichigo- don't get so worked up."

"I know." Ichigo managed to get out, in a calmness that surprised even him, while following them. "Seriously, at times like this, I just miss Chad... at least he never pulled this sort of thing."

"Yeah, but just missing him won't bring him back." Mizuiro said, still pulling Keigo, who put up a half-hearted resistance.

"Who is Chad?" Rukia asked, tagging along.

"Chad was a friend of ours at high school. He died a few years ago in a car accident." Ichigo replied, not even bothering to look at Rukia.

"Err... oh. I'm sorry to hear that."

"There's no need for that. It's already several years in the past by now."

The silence that followed this exchange could only be described as 'awkward', and lasted until the four of them had made their way to the classroom.

The moment their little group entered the classroom, a voice called out. "There you are, Ichigo! What's that I hear about you getting familiar with foreign students that I haven't even seen yet?"

The person that spoke had been Arisawa Tatsuki, another one of Ichigo's friends, who was standing together with Inoue Orihime and Honsho he saw her, Ichigo smiled for perhaps the first time during the entire day. "Hey, Tatsuki." He said. "It's not like I'm really getting familiar with her, I just ran across her on a walk, and we talked a bit, that's all."

"Riiiight." Tatsuki sneered. "Who's our foreign student, anyway?"

"That's me!" Rukia said, and stepped forth, still keeping up her sweet-girl act. "My name is Kuchiki Rukia, and I'm from Germany. I'm studying abroad for this year."

"Uh, hold on." Keigo interjected "Didn't you tell me that you're an exchange student...?"

"Hm? No, you must have misunderstood something there, Asano-kun. I told you that I'm studying abroad." Ichigo was quite amazed how Rukia could pull of a blatant lie like that, and even smile Keigo into the face. Any compassion that he would have felt for his friend's confusion vanished however, when he took his earlier teasing into consideration.

"From Germany, huh? You could easily pass for being Japanese, though, you know?" It was at this moment, that Ichigo realized that the real test for Rukia's excuses had come now – and he wasn't even sure whether he wanted her excuses to be believable or not.

"Oh, my parents moved from Japan to Germany many years before I was even born. I just thought that I could spend one year studying in their home country." As much as he disliked Rukia, Ichigo had to admit: If she really put some thought into it, she could actually come up with a decent fake background.

"Ah, I see. And were are you staying?" _That's a good question, actually..._ Ichigo thought to himself.

"I originally wanted to stay in an apartment, but when I met Kurosaki-kun earlier, he kindly offered me to stay at his home." Ichigo was glad that right now, nobody was looking at his face, since he was just now giving Rukia a glorious death glare.

"_Isn't that right, Kurosaki-kun?_" The way Rukia pronounced her question in combination with the unsettingly sweet smile that she gave him made it clear to Ichigo that he was in for a world of pain should he dare to disagree.

"...yeah." Ichigo said, glaring evilly at Keigo, who was- all too predictably- grinning, gesturing and posturing quietly but energetically. "My mom has some Swedish friends, so she gets along with him just fine."

"Didn't she say she was German?" Mizuiro asked.

Shit.

"Well, I am also part Swedish, on my mother's side." Rukia said, and Ichigo was amazed at how honest and truthful her spontaneous lie was. "Charming country. Lots of mountains, snow and polar bears." And obviously, Ichigo noted, not as well versed in geography as she was in acting.

"You don't say." Keigo said, sounding amazed. "So you're Germano-Swedish-Japanese?"

He actually believed it?

"And a quarter Filipino." Rukia added with a smile.

"That's fascinating." Mizuiro nodded. Ichigo wasn't sure if he bought it, but at least he wasn't questioning it.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Some hours later, the two of them headed back home. Rukia was obnoxiously cheerful, in a smug, quiet kind of way, while Ichigo was entertaining fantasies of murder.

"So, you've got some nice friends." Rukia remarked. "You're lucky."

"Not _that_ lucky," He grumbled.

"You're just sore they teased you."

"...shut up."

"They seem like nice people." Rukia continued, unperturbed. "You really do... seem to have life ahead of you." She suddenly sounded serious, solemn. "You'll make a fine shinigami with some training."

"What's got you so serious?"

She shook her head. "Nothing." She looked him in the eye. "The battles ahead may be dangerous. You might even die, and that's why I need you trained properly." She sounded almost apologetic. "Be very careful, Ichigo. Our world of ghost is not for the weak."

"I'll learn, don't you worry." Ichigo reassured her. It had yet to register in his teenage mind, one so full of youthful hubris, how much was at stake, how lives would be in danger and how he would have power, power to genuinely change those lives. It had with Rukia, and somewhere, somehow, she felt guilty. Recruiting a teenager was far from ideal- but it was her only choice at the moment.

They continued walking down the street.

"...so, who's that redheaded girl who was ogling me?" Rukia said.

"Remember why I said you shouldn't say you were a lesbian? That's why."

Rukia blinked. "Say what?"

"She is. And she also likes to grope people. And she gets away with it, because apparently it's not sexual harassment if girls do it."

"You don't say."

Ichigo shrugged. "Some people try their best to defy the stereotype, others live it. Luckily, she seems focused on Orihime, and Tatsuki usually punches her out if she tries anything."

"The world of the living really is fascinating." Rukia said.

"Whatever you say..." Ichigo murmured.

To Ichigo's great relief, Rukia stayed silent for the rest of the way home, which allowed him to put some thought into how he would tell his mother and his sisters that Rukia would be living with them for now. Instead of making him less nervous, his thinking however achieved the opposite effect: Fooling his friends was one thing, but fooling his mother would most likely be a whole lot harder. She had known him for almost two decades now, so she wouldn't have that hard a time figuring out if he lied to her. That was going to be tricky.

By the time that they reached his home, Ichigo still wasn't any wiser in regards to how to approach this. With an uncertain call of "I'm home!" he entered the apartment, and with a growing uneasiness, he made his way into the kitchen, where he found his mother and his younger sister Karin sitting at the table.

"Oh, Ichigo! Why didn't you tell me that you had a girlfriend earlier? What's her name?" Masaki asked, when she saw her son enter the room with Rukia.

"She's not my girlfriend, mom. This is Kuchiki Rukia, a new student at my school. She's from Germany, and studying abroad this year. I met her on a walk earlier, and offered her to stay here for this year." The instant that these words left Ichigo's mouth, he couldn't help but wonder if they sounded as incredibly stupid as he thought they did.

"I didn't know that you could be that kind, Ichi. Are you sure that you haven't fallen in love with her without realizing it? It isn't exactly like you to be that nice to a random stranger." Karin snarked.

"Be a bit nicer to your brother, Karin." His mother chided. "I don't know, Ichigo... I mean, I'm glad you have a gir- a friend, but we can't just take in random strangers."

"Come on, mom," Ichigo said, trying his best at puppy dog eyes. He had always been terrible with those, but he knew his mother had a heart of gold. "You're always telling me how I should be more caring- well, this is me trying. Besides, she could pay rent. Right, Rukia?" He nudged her, in a 'you damn well better' sort of way.

"Of course I can!" Rukia chirped. "Goodness me, I'd never like to be thought of as a freeloader. It won't be much, but what little I can offer, you will get."

"Well... I suppose we could use the money." Masaki said.

"And just look at her," Ichigo said, deciding to go for the emotional angle. "We couldn't turn her out now. It's dark outside, and who knows what could happen to her."

"Well, I wouldn't want that." Masaki nodded. "For tonight. And maybe tomorrow. If the rent is good."

Ichigo smiled inwardly. Done.

And then he noticed how tired his mother looked, even more than yesterday.

"So Yuzu is..." Ichigo said quietly, almost quietly enough for it to be only a whisper.

"At the hospital. The doctors..." She shook her head. "She is really sick, Ichigo. They don't know how bad it is yet, but..."

"Err... who is Yuzu?" Rukia asked. Ichigo could clearly hear that she already understood that an unpleasant subject had been brought up.

"Yuzu is my other sister. She always had a weak heart, and recently, her general condition has just gotten worse."

"...oh." Was all that Rukia could get out in response to that. Ichigo certainly didn't mind, though: He preferred not thinking about what could happen, since it only made him desperate.

"Nevermind. C'mon, I'll show you your room."

As he left the kitchen, Ichigo sighed. This was going to be a long time as substitute shinigami...

* * *

**Author's Notes:**  
And that concludes the second chapter. Now, for something that I deem quite necessary:

Disclaimer: I do not hate Chad in any way. As a matter of fact, I was actually all for including him in the story - but as GKR made me realize, his importance in Bleach is almost non-existant, and no amount of rewriting the series could change that. So yeah, don't hate him, but I realized that we really don't need him.


	3. Beware of guys with skull mask faces

**Author's Notes:**

Written in record time (for two lazy asses, that is), here it is: The third chapter to this fic! Since the first two chapters only really served the purpose of introducing the main differences to characters and setting, this chapter is a good bit longer than the previous two, so that the plot moves along some more.

* * *

"So I stand like this, and swing the sword up and down?"

"No, no, you've got it all wrong." Rukia said, sounding annoyed. "Legs wider apart- stand in a way that it's not easy to make you lose your balance. And don't hold that sword straight out like that- it's a sword, not a club. More outwards-" Ichigo made an adjustment- "yes, that's better. Now, swing it up and down until your muscles begin to ache."

It was morning, just two hours before breakfast, and the two of them were finally getting around to the basics of kendo- or zanjutsu, swordplay, as she had labeled it. Ichigo hadn't minded getting up early, but he found himself minding Rukia's tone more and more.

"That's all there is to it, swinging the sword?"

"You learn to crawl before you learn to walk, Ichigo. I'm guessing that whoever was your sensei in your karate dojo didn't teach you how to knock people over on your first day."

"No…" Ichigo grunted. That one had been all about learning basic stances. It wasn't that this didn't make sense, but Rukia wasn't the most pedagogical of teachers. "So uh, how long before I become a level twenty blademaster with a plus five sword of destruction?"

"…what?" Rukia shook her head irritably. "If it's about skill, then… well, not counting when you actually have to fight… twenty years to become a master, with rigorous exercise. That's not what we aim for, though. I'm going to make sure you're not going to end up killing yourself out there, especially with a sword that big and heavy."

"Great. So how long before I am proficient?"

"Maybe with a month's intensive training, you'll have picked up enough basics to not get thrown out of a kendo class. Now swing!"

Ichigo began swinging the sword up and down. It was remarkably heavy, but being in his shinigami form as he was, it was not much of a bother. It was really something, he thought, how much stronger he felt as a spirit. A sword like this, he'd struggle to lift- let alone swing- in real life, and here he was swinging, up and down like it was a regular bamboo stick…

After much swinging, his breath was ragged, his muscles were aching and his legs trembling. This was an exerting business after all, and he was new to it. Still, he could keep going to a thousand, if only to see the look on Rukia's face.

"…one hundred an eighty six!" He breathed heavily. "One hundred and eighty-seven! One hundred and-"

"That's enough. Go back into your body, shower and get breakfast." She smiled briefly. "You're doing all right. Don't slack, and you might not mess this up."

"…thanks, sensei." Ichigo said, getting back into his body. Hard as this was, it didn't feel bad putting his muscles to use – not to mention that the training this early in the morning got him awake better than any coffee did.

A little over a week had passed since Rukia had turned Ichigo's life upside-down by giving him the powers of a shinigami, and staying at his house until she found a place of her own. While the first day with her had been incredibly awkward both at school and at home, Rukia quickly adjusted to the new life. Just as Ichigo had hoped, with Rukia actually paying rent, it had been easy for her to convince his mother to let her stay for a year, as she and his sister believed – though Ichigo whole-heartedly hoped that Rukia would not end up staying for a year.

While Rukia adjusting to life of a student had gone way quicker than expected, it had been quite the opposite for Ichigo and his life as shinigami. Hollows would always attack at the most inconvenient times, such as during class, while he was eating, or even in the middle of the night. Whenever a hollow showed up during class, Ichigo and Rukia would always end up using the excuse that they had to go the toilet, which obviously did not exactly help the issue of his gossiping friends, who already all but outright said that they considered the two a couple.  
The actual fights against the hollows had remained as easy as his first two encounters. While the appearance of the creatures could drastically vary, all of the beasts that Ichigo had encountered so far were still weak enough for him to defeat them with little to no problems, making him wonder how exactly Rukia could have failed against the first one, forcing Ichigo in to his current position. When Ichigo had however shared this thought with Rukia, she only replied that he had only been lucky so far, and that it was his own stupidity that had caused this situation.

Keeping the entire shinigami-business hidden from his family and friends had turned out to be much easier than expected: As Rukia had revealed to Ichigo, she owned a device that allowed her to alter the memories of living people, which they used to erase any suspicions that came up in regards to Ichigo's odd tendency to rush towards the bathroom at the weirdest times. But at least as far as his family was concerned, the altering of memories turned out to be less necessary as expected, since both Masaki and Karin were too busy with their job and school respectively, and of course with Yuzu. Over the last few days, her condition had barely changed. While this was not exactly good news, it was still worlds better than receiving bad news.

Yes, the show did go on… even if it did so in the strangest of ways.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Inoue Orihime was a kindly girl, well spirited although terribly absent-minded, sometimes enough so to make her best friend Tatsuki wonder if her mind had not divorced reality entirely. More importantly, Rukia had noted, she had some small measure of reiatsu, moreso perhaps than several of Ichigo's other classmates.

"What do you think of Orihime?" She asked casually, staring out a school window during yet another lunch break.

"What about her?" Ichigo grunted, consuming his sushi rolls in a manner more reminiscent of assault than of mere eating. "She's nice, and all the boys like her because tits, and Tatsuki's friends with her so I kind of know her a little."

"You noticed her assets, eh?" Rukia smirked.

Deciding not to bite, Ichigo grunted, "Hard not to. I mean, I do have eyes. What's your point?"

"No point. I'm just trying to learn. Fit in, you know?`"

"With your lying skills-"

"Acting skills."

"-acting skills, fitting in should be easy, right?"

"So call it curiosity."

Ichigo grunted. "You know Keigo and Mizuiro. There's Tatsuki, who I've been friends with since I took up karate when I was five,"

"Ooh, childhood friend?" Rukia smirked. "Doesn't it usually mean she's the most likely love interest?"

"Luckily, this isn't romantic fiction. Besides, wouldn't that make you the competing love interest, being the new and interesting character?"

Rukia chuckled. "Maybe. I mean, I am ten times your age, but maybe you like older women?"

"Anyways," Ichigo continued, "Besides them, I don't really have a lot of friends. I got this reputation as a thug, so…"

"Did you know that they all have reiatsu?"

"…you mean the whole soul thingy? Don't everyone?"

"More than usual. It's curious."

"Means they'd be more likely to be hunted, doesn't it?"

"Oh, how practically minded you are… and yes, it does."

"Why, though?"

"I don't know. I have an inkling, but I don't want to jump to conclusions."

Shrugging, Ichigo went back to his lunch.

But since fate didn't seem to be kind to him these days, he could only take a few more bites, before he was once again interrupted. "Hey, you two love birds! Would you mind some company, or would you prefer having your privacy?"

"For the last time, Tatsuki: Rukia is not my girlfriend." Ichigo said, not even bothering to look up from his meal.

"Of course she isn't, and I'm going to be the King of the Pirates." Tatsuki snarked back, a big grin on her face. Just like Keigo, she had really taken a liking in teasing Ichigo about Rukia.

"Well, good luck with that. From what I hear, the competition is a good bit ahead of you."

This exchange left Rukia irritated, to say the least. "...Pirate King?"

"Forget about it. It's not important." Tatsuki told Rukia, her tone much kinder then when she had spoken with Ichigo.

Only now Ichigo looked up from his meal, and, to his moderate surprise, saw that Tatsuki was alone. "Where's Orihime? Isn't she usually with you at these times?"

"Orihime got hit by a car earlier this morning. Nothing too major happened since the car was moving rather slow, but I still insisted that she'd let herself get checked up when she came here. She really has the worst luck recently..."

That got Rukia's attention. "Bad luck? Like how?" She inquired, her tone unexpectedly serious.

"Well, Orihime has gotten in all kinds of bad accidents recently. A few days ago, she almost fell down some stairs here at school, just yesterday she dropped a very sharp knife that was she using to cut vegetables, which just barely missed her foot, and now this..." Tatsuki explained, somewhat taken aback.

"Tragic." Rukia said, sounding almost dismissive. It sounded cold, but Ichigo noticed the look in his eye. Was there something else to it? "Well, we're almost finished with lunch- better get going for class"

"You've still got at least twenty minutes-"

"Oh, it never hurts to be there early." Rukia said. "We'll probably quiz each other on some of the questions for the next lesson. Right, Ichigo?"

"Oh, I get it." Tatsuki grinned. "You'll quiz him, right? Just remember to use protection if you decide to have an in depth discussion about legal theory."

Ichigo shot her a fierce glare. "We better get going." He said, deciding not to make things worse. "See you, Tatsuki."

"Have fun!"

With that, they left. As soon as they had turned a corner, Rukia practically dragged him away, pulling him into an empty corridor.

"What is it? You seemed to get… I don't know, upset."

"I don't know yet, but we need to find out. I think that girl, Orihime… she might be targeted."

"Targeted?"

"Did she have a relative who died recently?"

Ichigo stopped eating. "Uh, yeah. She had a brother who died just two years ago." He had a bad feeling about this.

"Ichigo, I told you about how hollows form. Do you remember?"

"Yes, yes- restless spirits driven mad by regret, et cetera and so forth. I'm not thick."

"I suppose I should tell you a bit more. Hollows… when they first form, their first instinct is to find their loved ones."

"Wait, you mean-"

"You know how you hear about people passing away shortly after a loved one? People like to think it's a romantic bond between two people taking both into the next world, but it's not. It's a hollow, killing and eating the one he loved the most."

"Uh." Ichigo had a cold feeling, like a slab of iron sinking into his gut, as the full implications went through his mind. "That's… um. So if I did…?"

"If you did, you'd probably kill your mother and sisters very soon." Rukia said matter-of-factly.

"…right." Ichigo said, trying not to think about it because, fuck. "So what do we do now? Is there any way to find out if she really is being targeted?"

"Unfortunately, no. All we can really do is wait until I get orders regarding her. In the meantime, you better mentally prepare yourself to fight Orihime's brother."

In response, Ichigo only frowned. So he couldn't even be sure if the life of his friend was in danger, and had to just sit around and wait. Wonderful.

The rest of the day went by painfully slowly. During the entire time, Ichigo kept nervously looking at Rukia, constantly expecting her to make a sudden move, something that would let him know Orihime's potential hollow-brother had shown up. But until the end of the day, no such thing happened, which did not mix well with the tension that had been building up within him. After however even dinner went by without anything happening, Ichigo was finally able to calm down as he sat down to do his homework, while he started to wonder if perhaps Rukia had been wrong about Orihime's brother after all – which, as it turned out was a mistake. Not even five minutes after he sat down to work, Rukia burst into his room wearing the glove necessary for removing Ichigo's soul from his body (as well as one of Yuzu's pajamas that Masaki had borrowed her), charged at him, and hit his chin once more.

"Ouch! Can't you at least knock at the door before you just charge in?!"

"There's no time for that! I got my instructions for the next hollow!" Rukia quickly hissed.

"Urgh, alright... where is it?" Ichigo asked in an annoyed tone, expecting a battle that was no more challenging than any of his previous encounters with hollows.

"It's right here! Now!"

Ichigo barely had time to react. From out the wall- or at a closer look, from out a blackness suddenly nesting at his wall- a hideous creature burst forth. Its face was a large, white mask of bone, and its body was a detestable mix-and-match of man and animal, with the muscular red torso of a human being and the body of a snake. The creature lashed out at Ichigo with its long, clawed hand, and Ichigo only barely dodged. Pulling out his blade, he took a stance.  
The monster roared, and raised its hand. Realizing that it was better that he hit it before it hit him, Ichigo swung his sword down, clamming solidly into its forearm. Unfortunately, it seemed to have no effect- the swipe it had been preparing was stopped, but the arm wasn't even nicked; it was as if it was immune to his blade's damage.

"Mine!" It roared. "Mine! She is all mine! Stay away!"

Ichigo didn't answer, instead raising his sword, aiming for the mask. The arm was a no go, but if he could hit the mask, it would all be over…  
But hollows are creatures of instinct, none of which is stronger than that of survival. The monster quickly guarded its face with an arm, Ichigo unable to do much more than push.

This was bad. His room wasn't exactly small, but it was positively cramped in the context of swinging a greatsword at a gigantic monster. The hollow too seemed to realize it, its second arm finding little room to move in. Glaring viciously at Ichigo, it settled for another deafening roar, before sliding up into the roof, leaving an empty room and a surprisingly whole roof.

"What…" Ichigo was panting. "What the hell was that?! How did he…"

"Hollows can create small portals between their world and ours, to slide in and out of at will." Rukia explained. "We're lucky this room was too small."

"Yeah, that's fucking lucky!" Ichigo exclaimed, still recovering from the shock. "These damn things can pop up anywhere, any time, and we are lucky!"

"They usually don't use them like this," Rukia reassured him, "usually, they just enter this world, hunt and go back."

"So why'd this one come into my bloody room? Am I that tasty?!"

"That… is a good question, actually. Maybe what the hollow said has something to do with it?" She suggested.

Ichigo scratched his head. "What did it say? I wasn't quite paying attention, since I had to think about how to kill this thing."

"At least you're focusing on the right things... I think it said 'She's mine! Stay away!' or something along those lines."

"'She'? Who could that thing have meant with tha-" He interrupted himself, as realization dawned. "Orihime." He whispered.

"Hm? What did you say?"

"Orihime. That hollow just now must have been Orihime's brother, and he really is after her." Ichigo explained, struggling to stay calm.

"But even so, that doesn't explain why he would go after you." Rukia pointed out, still skeptical.

Rukia's objection was however met with little approval. "Does that even matter?! Orihime's in danger! We need to get to her place as quickly as possible, or else he'll eat her!"

"Alright, alright! But how do you want to get there?"

"Me? I thought you had something for this! Don't you shinigami have something that allows you to go to other places quickly?"

"Well, we do have a few means, buuut..." She smiled weakly, with a guilty expression on her face "you as a substitute shinigami can't use them. We have no other choice but to go by foot."

Ichigo glared at Rukia. He was already thinking about a snarky response to give Rukia, but decided against it. There simply was no time to waste with arguing. "Fine. Then get on my back. I'll carry you there, so let's get going."

Dashing across rooftops and telephone poles, the two of them made their way towards Orihime's house, Rukia riding on Ichigo's back. Swearing under his breath, Ichigo hoped they wouldn't be too late.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Spending time with Orihime was as it usually was for Tatsuki: entertaining, sweet and with a dash of confusion added to the mix.

"Hey Tatsuki-chan, do you want a snack? I'm making peanut butter and herring sandwiches with ketchup!"

"No thanks." Tatsuki said, smiling to herself. Enter the confusion- Orihime's cooking skills were a sight for gods- not bad, but certainly alien to anyone who had ever been near actual food. "I'll take some tea, though."

"O-kay!" Orihime chirped.

As much as she loved spending time with Orihime, there was something about tonight that felt… off. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, that something… else was near. It had been there all night, subtly, but it was coming to her with a vengeance now.

It was silly. She didn't believe in ghosts or spirits, but as much as she wanted to tell herself it was just indigestion- and with Orihime, that would be an easy excuse- she couldn't. There was… well, what was there? Feeling unease, Tatsuki shook her head and shrugged.

As she stared out a window, she heard Orihime walk in the room. Just as she turned her head to look to her, Orihime yelped. She had fallen to the floor- which was odd, because it didn't look like she tripped.

Getting to her feet, Tatsuki said, "Orihime? Are you okay?"

"Help…" Orihime whimpered.

Tatsuki looked closer. Something _was_ off. Orihime looked like she was being held down- and there was a blur over her body. Tatsuki blinked several times. What in the world? As she looked close, she saw a shimmer of red flicker in and out of her vision.

Well, never mind what it was! Quickly, she rushed to Orihime's side. As she got closer to her friend, the feeling of something being nearby got stronger and stronger – and suddenly, an invisible force knocked her back.

As if she had been struck by a fierce blow, Tatsuki flew into the nearest wall. The impact hurt badly, but the pain wasn't what concerned her most.. For a moment, her vision went blurry, and she was close to getting unconscious, but managed to pull herself out of it. Orihime was in danger – Tatsuki simply couldn't just fall unconscious in such a situation! She quickly shook her head to get rid of that feeling of dizziness, only to feel a sharp pain in her left shoulder.

With a feeling of dread, Tatsuki turned her head towards her shoulder, where she saw a cut that went right through her clothes, and deep into her flesh. Blood was flowing from the wound, dying the shirt she was wearing in a dark red color. "B-Blood? When did I-?"

But before she could even finish her sentence, _something_ pushed her towards the ground, just like what happened with Orihime. By now, Tatsuki was starting to question the reality of the situation – maybe she was just sleeping, and having a bad nightmare? Maybe she was about to wake up, and realize that it was the middle of the night – no. The pain, the feeling of the sheer force on her almost beginning to break her bones was too real for that. It was if she was stuck in a horror movie.

Desperately, Tatsuki used all of her strength to try and get back up, fight against the force that held her down – and somehow, she was able to get back up a bit. Her hopes getting up, Tatsuki increased her efforts... only for the _thing_holding her down increasing the force with which it held her down even more.

She couldn't breathe. Her view of the room, of the creature, it was all a blur. Desperation began to overtake her. Struggling, she kicked and punched, thrashed- but the grip holding her was too strong, like the oppressive fist of a giant. Her shoulder burned with pain, and fear began to take her mind. She breathed raggedly, not even having the presence of mind to scream. What the hell was this? What was going on?

And just as she was about to pass into blissful oblivion, the pressure on her chest let up. She shook her head, ignoring the pain in her shoulder. Slowly, she worked herself up in a sitting position- what happened?

She blinked, finally getting a good view. The red blur- it had taken a somewhat humanoid shape now- was… it was fighting a black blur. With red hair. She could hear voices, as if through the opposite end of a tunnel, but it was so… familiar.

"Ichigo?" Was all that she managed to get out before she lost her consciousness.

Ichigo just barely noticed it, Tatsuki's groaning of his name. He had arrived just barely in time; the hollow had pinned them both down and looked like it was planning on eating Tatsuki. He had slammed through a window and into the hollow, knocking it back, and was now trying his best to cut its head off. It was resilient, though, and its arms were tough and thick. Ichigo grit his teeth.

"You bastard… this is your little sister, isn't it?" He spat. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"It can't be reasoned with, Ichigo!" Rukia shouted. "Don't even try talking to it! Just cut its head off and finish it!"

"I'm trying!" Ichigo shot back angrily– which distracted him long enough for the hollow to shake him off and get back to its feet, while Ichigo landed on his own back. In a quick motion, Ichigo jumped back up, and got into a battle-ready pose that Rukia had taught him earlier, awaiting the hollow's next move. Instead of attacking him, though, the creature only stood there, staring at Ichigo, who only now got a good full view of the hollow.

The hollow had a long, snake-like body, lacking anything resembling legs. Completely unlike a snake however, its upper body was broad like that of a human, and even had a pair of long, muscular arms, ending in claws.

Located in the center of its chest was a hole. Its face, meanwhile, resembled a human skull with black hair, and staring, red eyes... the right eye, at least. The left eye was, as a matter of fact, just like that of a human. Seeing this disturbed Ichigo more than everything else about the hollow's appearance: When hollows looked like inhuman monsters, it was easy enough for him to pretend that they were just beasts, but in this case, the fact that this creature was once human was absolutely impossible. Against his own will, Ichigo found himself shuddering, as the hollow's monstrous face twisting itself in anger.

"_Kurosaki... Ichigo...?_" The creature said, its – _his_ voice a deep, distorted growl. "_You...! It is all your fault! You are the reason she forgot me!_"

Striking out quickly, he moved his right arm forward in an attempt to hit Ichigo, who raised his sword, managing to block just barely. The hollow's strength pushed him a good bit backward, but didn't manage to knock him over. Assuming that hitting the sharp side of his sword had at the same time injured the hollow's claw, he looked up with a self-confident grin – which immediately vanished when he saw that the hollow's claw was in fact completely unscathed!

What was up with this hollow? He could hit hard enough to cleave a tree trunk in two- and that was an amazing amount of power, but this hollow hadn't even taken a nick. Looking closer, Ichigo saw thick skin on its forearms, grey like iron. Armour? He shook his head; this was no time to get distracted. The hollow roared, and raised its arm again.

What happened next was in no way a product of a calculating mind, but the instinct of a fighter finally kicking in. As the hollow raised its arm, Ichigo dodged low and lunged forward, sweeping his blade sideways and upwards, cutting into the hollow from the side of its torso to the armpit. This time, he drew blood- and pain. The hollow screamed, walloping Ichigo with its other hand. Through the wall Ichigo went, and without thinking he braced himself as if he was landing on ground- and found himself standing on thin air. He allowed himself only a second's worth of shock before he turned his eyes to the hollow. It glared at him from the hole it made, grabbing at the edges and making ready to lunge.

Ichigo calmed himself, and remembered what Rukia had told him. _When you fight, master your emotions. Never be rash. Keep a level head, and stick to your training._. Determinedly, he raised his sword.

"Come on, then!" He shouted. "Come get me! I was the one who took Orihime- so come kill me if you can, here and now!"

Again, the hollow roared, lunging towards him.

Good. He was away from Tatsuki and Orihime – that was the easy part. The hard part, though, was coming right up: As the hollow got close, he unleashed a series of quick slashes, which Ichigo could only narrowly dodge. There was no time for counterattacking. If any of the hollow's attacks hit Ichigo, they would cut him bad, very bad, so all Ichigo could do for the time being was to continue evading, and search for an opening.

"_It is all your fault!_" The hollow once again shrieked, while still keeping his assault against Ichigo up. "_The fault of you and your other friends! Before she met you, she would pray for me every day... I had died, and yet I was happy, since she still remembered me. I was always watching! But once she met you, and all of these other people, she stopped! She forgot me, left me all alone! But I won't let you take her away from me!_"

Ichigo didn't say anything in response. After hearing Rukia's explanation on how hollows behave, the reasoning of Orihime's brother was hardly surprising... and more importantly, Ichigo had finally found an opening in his barrage of attacks. Grasping his sword in both hands, Ichigo charged at the hollow, planning to attack his mask with an upward slice –

SMASH! Something knocked Ichigo out of the air, and into the ground. Though he was seeing stars, Ichigo knew it was a matter of seconds before the hollow would bear down on him. He could feel its presence, its spiritual mass like a malignant tumor coming down…

Quickly, he braced himself with his left arm, and flipped over. The hollow had almost come down on him completely. Shaking his head, Ichigo put an arm on the ground and got up to his knees. He had just barely gotten to his feet when the hollow smashed into him; he could barely block in time. He was sent flying backwards, but though he had to struggle, he managed to keep his balance. Getting pinned would be the end of him.

* * *

Looking from on high, concealed in the dark of night, two figures observed the frantic struggle.

"This is your new potential?" The first voice, rough and low, said, sounding skeptical.

"One of several." The other said with cheerful confidence. "I'd say he is doing fairly well."

"He is fighting at his best just to stay alive."

"And he stays alive- and what's more, he isn't getting hit. For a nineteen year old with no previous training before the last few weeks, that's quite good."

"I've no doubt the kid could be good if you gave him half a century to grow- but do you have that kind of time?"

"Look at them," the second said. "Two fighters, both new to the scene. One a hollow, only a few years old. Powerful- more powerful than normal for a hollow, in all likeliness owed more to patronage by a stronger hollow than natural capacity-"

"Don't get sidetracked."

"-right. The other is a teenager with a lot of raw power but almost no training, yet with significant progress for the short time he's had it. You know who his father is- do you doubt he'll do what we need him to?"

"I suppose you're right."

"I do not need an unstoppable juggernaut. I need a distraction- and if he lives, all the better. He'll do. Easy to manipulate too, I'd wager. Look now!"

* * *

Though the attacks were fast and fierce, though the weight of the sword made his muscles burn, the fight had stabilized. The hollow had hoped to overpower him, and it had failed. Its blows were slower- or he was moving faster. Whichever it was, Ichigo was going to take advantage of it.  
There was the opening again- but what had happened last time he tried to use it? He jumped back a yard, and managed to stop the lash of the hollow's tail just in time. _That_ was what had smashed him into the street, faster than either of its arms could move.

Come to think of it, its moves were… predictable. They were still fast and furious, but they seemed to follow a pattern. _Good_. He wasn't stronger, but finally he knew a way to get an edge over the monster.

But staying alive was one thing. Ichigo still needed to find a way to get past the hollow's defenses, and attack his mask. The longer this fight lasted, the more it drained his stamina, of which he was certain that Orihime's hollowfied brother had more than him.

Following a sudden whim, Ichigo seemingly blindly charged at the hollow, evading its claw strikes. Just like before, the hollow lashed out its tail, intending to knock Ichigo out of the area in which he could become dangerous – which was however exactly what Ichigo had hoped for. With a well-timed hop, he avoided getting hit by the tail, and landed on it before the hollow could retract it, gripping it firmly with his hand. The hollow obviously didn't take kindly to this, and started thrashing its tail around frantically, attempting to smash Ichigo into the ground to get rid of him.

But despite the wild movements that he was put through and the upcoming feeling of nausea, Ichigo still held firmly onto the tail, and slowly but steadily climbed onto the hollow's back from it.

"Now listen up! I don't care for what reason you try to kill me, Orihime, or my friends! Of course it's sad that she stopped praying for you, but don't you think that the only reason that Orihime stopped is because she doesn't want you to worry about her? You're her older brother! If anything, you should watch over her, and not harm her! If you hurt my friends, then it doesn't matter that you were Orihime's brother! I'll cut you down, with all of my strength!"  
Ichigo shouted, as he finally managed to make his way onto the hollow's back, directly behind his head. His human eye having grown wide in shock, Orihime's brother turned his masked head around, to look at Ichigo... only to be greeted by swift strike from Ichigo's blade.

The blade came down hard, slamming into the hollow's mask. There was a gratifying crunch as it cracked. Satisfied, Ichigo jumped back, waiting for it to dissolve. Yet strangely, no such thing happened. Instead, behind that wicked mask Ichigo could see a human face; an eye, half a cheek revealed from the cut Ichigo made.

"I… I see now." It said, its voice soft and gentle. "I really… oh dear god, I hurt Orihime, didn't I…" it mumbled, sounding frightened.

"What, you're back now? Is this some kind of trick?" Ichigo demanded.

"I don't think so." Rukia said, coming up the street from out Orihime's apartment building. "He was recently turned, I think- it's not unheard of that a hollow can preserve some humanity for a short while."

"It's not going to go away though, is it?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"No."

"I- I hurt her, my god-" the hollow cried, sounding anguished.

"Calm down." Ichigo grunted. "She'll be fine. Won't she, Rukia?"

Rukia nodded. "A couple of bruises, but she will be fine. You did no real harm."

"That… that's good." The hollow said, sounding relieved. It looked at Ichigo, its one human eye staring intensely into his own. "I almost… I almost did the one thing no big brother should ever do. You must purify me, please, before I lose control of my senses again!"

"Big… brother?"

Coming from the way Rukia had come, it was Orihime's voice. Only a short moment later, Orihime herself approached the three of them. She seemed completely unharmed, both mentally and physically... and there was a long chain hanging from the center of her chest. There was no doubt that she could see both Ichigo and her brother, as she clearly walked up to the latter.

Ichigo gave Rukia an incredulous look. "Is that... supposed to happen?"

"It seems like before we arrived, he knocked his sister's soul out of his body... don't worry, this nothing that we can't fix. Let's see what happens now, but don't let your guard down." Rukia instructed, not taking her eyes off Orihime and her brother.

"Big brother... Sora..." She said, her voice little more than a loud whisper. "I... never did forgot you. Even when I stopped praying for you, I still didn't forget you... I knew that you were watching over me. But I didn't want you to worry about me. Those hairpins you gave me on the day you died... I've been wearing on every day since then. So please, don't be sad... I will never forget you. Don't worry about me. Just move on..."

And with that, she reached up to her brother, and embraced him in one last hug – as well as she could with his monstrous body.

Hesitatingly, Sora raised his large arms, and returned the hug, as tears started to roll down his face. "Orihime... thank you... and farewell..."

After letting the two have their short, tender moment, Rukia put a hand on Orihime's shoulder. "Inoue-san, you need to let go now. He must be purified, or he will become a monster again."

Though she seemed pained to hear it, Orihime stepped back. "I understand."

"Don't worry." Rukia said reassuringly. "His soul will pass on to the afterlife. He will be happy there."

"Well," Ichigo said, stepping up with sword in hand, "let's just do this, shall we?" There was an awkward feeling in his gut- the notion that behind every mask, there was once a human being, had not quite sunk in until just now, and it was an uncomfortable realization to say the least. Holding up his sword, he prepared himself.

Then, Sora gently grabbed his blade and slid it through his own neck. Surprised and relieved, Ichigo watched as the mask shattered, and the monstrous body began to dissolve. "Good bye, Orihime." Sora said, smiling as he passed on.

Ichigo just stared, not sure what to say. He had always known about death, about the tragedies of the world- but knowing something and feeling something were two different things altogether. He could only imagine how this would feel to Orihime.

"So… he's finally passed on?" The girl in question asked.

"For good." Rukia said, smiling. "Let's get you back in your body, shall we?"

Without much ado, Rukia took Orihime back to her apartment, Ichigo following behind, and fused her soul to her body again using the same glove she used for Ichigo.

"So long as the chain is intact, the soul can be restored." Rukia explained, pulling out a strange-looking little device. "Look here." She said, as Orihime's eyes fluttered, finally waking up. There was a 'poof', and then Rukia put the device back in her pocket.

"What was that?" Ichigo asked.

"I just replaced her memories. Standard procedure for mortals who have seen things they shouldn't. Did Tatsuki see anything?"

"Uh, no," Ichigo said, feeling unsure of how he felt about taking away a memory like that, "she was knocked out when I came here. She'll probably think it was just a nightmare."

"Better safe than sorry." Rukia said, walking over to the barely conscious Tatsuki. She held up the device- but no 'poof' came this time. "Crap, no energy left." Rukia grunted.

Leaning forward, she mumbled a few words, and there was a faint green glow.

"What are you doing?"

"She was hurt. A flesh wound- not too bad, but definitely something a nightmare wouldn't explain." Seeing Ichigo's quizzical stare, she continued, "It's kido- shinigami magic. The healing kind, in this instance. I may be weak, but I haven't lost all power." Mumbling the spells, Rukia knit together the wound, sealing it perfectly. It took a while, but eventually Tatsuki's wound had closed entirely.

"I guess it'll be enough for now. Let's let her think it was a nightmare."

"Good. Let's go, then." Ichigo said, eager to get away from all this.

"By the way, that was a nice little speech you gave there earlier." Rukia said, as she and Ichigo made their way back to his home, this time slowly walking on the ground alongside each other.

"Ehh. I just thought that I had to say something, so I just said the first things that came to my mind." Ichigo replied, unsure if this was a genuine compliment, or if Rukia was just teasing him.

"No, no, I mean it. That really was the right thing to see... I think your words had just as big of a part to play in his purification as your attack on his mask did."

"Pah. If I could actually defeat hollows with just some good words, then I'd have a way easier time with all this." Ichigo grumbled. In response, Rukia only laughed.

"What's wrong with you, Rukia? You're being uncharacteristically cheerful." He asked in a puzzled tone.

"Am I? Well... I suppose I'm just glad that everything worked out so well. Orihime and Tatsuki are safe, Sora has moved on, and you had to fight against a hollow that was actually a challenge. Quite a successful evening, wouldn't you agree?"

"If you say so... but say, since this hollow was, as you said, an actual challenge, can't we just skip tomorrow's kendo training?" After a fight like the one he had just now, the last that Ichigo wanted was to get up at 5 AM next morning, just to wave his sword around some more.

"Hmm... nope!" Rukia chirped, before letting out a small, gleeful laughter.

* * *

oOo

* * *

When everything was quiet, Tatsuki opened her eyes. Even though her unconsciousness had apparently ultimately lasted only a few minutes, Tatsuki had still remained motionless, with her eyes closed, as to not draw any unnecessary attention to herself. But now, that she was certain that there was nothing more going, she sat up, and looked around her. Orihime's room looked just the way it did before this weird incident happened – if it happened at all.

As a matter of fact, Tatsuki would have gladly dismissed everything that happened as a bad dream... if it weren't for the fact that she clearly heard Rukia talk to the distant, unclear voice of both Ichigo and Orihime. While she didn't understand much of what Ichigo and Orihime had been saying, and didn't understand the meaning of most of what Rukia had said, one particular thing did strike her: Rukia saying something about "mortals who have seen things they shouldn't".

Just what the hell had that been about? Just who – or rather, _what_ – was Kuchiki Rukia? And what had she gotten Ichigo into?

Tatsuki looked at Orihime, who was now sleeping peacefully, before making her way to the window. As she looked out into the night, Tatsuki decided that she would be quite wary in regards to Ichigo and Rukia from now on.

* * *

oOo

* * *

From nearby rooftop, the two figures that had observed the battle between Ichigo and Sora were still watching Rukia and Ichigo.

"Seems like there's nothing more going on here... c'mon, let's go home." The rough and low voice said.

One of the figures left, but the other stayed around for a little longer.

"Really, quite the interesting substitute that you have chosen for yourself, Kuchiki Rukia... not to mention his friends..." The remaining figure than said after another minute or so, before it, too headed off into the night.


	4. Quirky people have complex personalities

**Author's Notes:  
**Don't get too used to this update speed. The quick release of this chapter is only due to its nature as a shorter one - future chapters will take longer.

* * *

A week had passed, and Ichigo was still recovering. Shinigami healing magic was good, apparently- it had saved him a hospital bill- but he could still feel the ache in his limbs. He flexed his arm, grimacing as he looked round the empty classroom. It was lunchtime, and he'd taken the opportunity to just have a little peace and quiet.

This, of course had been lost entirely on Rukia, who had the strangest affinity for finding him at any given time. She claimed she couldn't sense him, but sometimes he wondered…

As it was, he tried his best to ignore her as he stared out the window.

"…are you even listening to me?" Rukia said, sounding annoyed.

"No." Ichigo said flatly.

"You jerk, aren't you even going to try to pretend you were?"

"No." He grunted. "I was trying to just relax- last night's chase took up a good bit of time, and I thought I'd nap for half an hour, but apparently that's no longer an option."

"Oh." Rukia said, taken aback. She hadn't even considered that herself; her gigai was good enough that sleep was more of a recommendation than a necessity. Ichigo had a human body, with all its limitations. "Well, I had something important to talk about. Sort of."

"Is it important or isn't it?"

Rukia sighed. "Maybe. You know how your reiatsu is exceptional for a human being's?"

"You said that before. What about it?"

"It's way more than I would expect, even in an area saturated with souls rich in reiatsu."

"So I am a special snowflake."

Rukia shook her head. "Don't joke. Humans aren't meant to have this much power. So-"

"You're not going to tell me I'm going to die or something, are you?"

"No, and stop interrupting me!" Rukia smacked him lightly over the head. "I'm not an expert, but… well, to use a simple analogy, you're like a… pitcher."

"A pitcher."

"Yes, a pitcher full to the brim with water, and everyone else around is a glass half full."

"I don't get it."

"I think you're spilling water. And the glasses around you are catching some of it. Maybe." She grunted with frustration. "I wish I had access to the science library back in soul society- there's detailed information on that sort of thing there."

"So wait, you mean the one that's making my friends more… more ensouled or something, that's me?"

"Reiatsu doesn't like to be floating around, so it attaches itself to whatever workable source it finds. If there's no spiritually attuned human around, it eventually dissolves. You constantly produce at least a small excess of reiatsu… so in short, yes. Maybe."

"That's... not good at all, isn't it?"

"No, not really. People with more spiritual power tend to be targeted by hollows more than normal persons are... and then there's of course the increased risk of them reaching a level of reiatsu where they can see both you in your shinigami form and hollows, which in turn would make things quite problematic for us."

Following a sudden whim, Ichigo applied the palm of his hand to his forehead. "How else could it be... so, is there anything we could do about it?"

"Hmm." Rukia said, cupping her chin. "Well, I could try to teach you how to contain your reiatsu, but... since right now, I myself have almost none, that could be a bit hard to do. To be quite frank, just doing this theoretically won't be enough... we'd need to find someone who can actually show you this."

"So essentially, we'd need a shinigami who hasn't lost powers." Ichigo grimaced. "Great. I guess we'll just ask one of the dozens of shinigami that we meet every day then, right?"

"You can keep the sarcasm for yourself." Rukia said, making a slightly triumphant face. "There actually is some like that that we could ask... the only problem is that he's a bit...eccentric, and might need some convincing before he'd help you."

"Huh. So how do we get him to help us?" Ichigo asked, slightly taken aback.

"We'll only need to convince him to help _you_, actually. This man has already been helping me all along. But whether he'd help you in particular... that's a different question. I suppose I'll pay him a visit this afternoon, and ask him if he will help you."

"Aaand what do I do in the meantime?"

"You stay at home, and go after your business. Y'know, homework and the like." Rukia stated in a matter-of-factly tone.

Ichigo blinked. "Eh?! And what am I supposed to when a hollow shows up in the meantime?!"

"Valid point... I will just leave the gear necessary for detecting hollows, and removing your soul from your body with you, then. Don't worry, my absence shouldn't present too big of a problem to you!"

For a moment, Ichigo considered calling Rukia out on just forgetting something as major as that... when he realized that were was something more worthy of being pointed out. "Wait. When I technically don't need you for hunting down hollows, why do you stay around with me, and always accompany me when I go and fight these things?"

"Because you are a nineteen year-old human being with little experience in fighting hollows, and even less in kendo? Any hollow that is only a bit stronger than most of the ones that you have faced so far would be enough to get you into trouble, just like Orihime's brother last week. Not to mention that I do quite enjoy this life around you."

Ichigo grunted. "Point taken."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Heading out, Rukia frowned, deep in thought. She'd be skipping school, but teacher scoldings were the least of her worries. That man, that enigmatic ex-shinigami, was an infuriating person to deal with. He might outright reject her request- or grant it immediately as if on a whim. The logical part of her mind knew that he probably was nowhere near as whimsical as he pretended to be, but he was a damn good actor at that. Whenever she made a deal with him, she got the distinct impression she was being used- and sure, the most basic part of a deal is that both parties get used, that both get what they need, but it always felt like... he had something more planned. Some bigger game, perhaps?  
Or maybe she was just paranoid, and he wanted her to feel this uneasy. That was more than likely it- he was no big fish; he was a skilled petty smuggler with the kind of skills that made him more useful to the Gotei Thirteen alive than dead. It was all a mind game. Still, she needed his help...  
Walking with determination, she headed towards the Urahara shoten.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The rest of today's lessons went by without any other incident, and to Ichigo's relief, also without Rukia. Once the final lesson was over, Ichigo headed home alone, for the first time in weeks.

As he walked, the unusual silence caused by Rukia's absence on his way back home got him thinking, and reflecting. Rukia had been living with him and his family for several weeks now, and as much as he hated to admit it: The entire hollow-hunting business with Rukia was... fun, in a way. Sure, fighting these evil spirits put his own life in danger almost every day, but on the other hand, it also was welcome distraction from the things going on in his life.  
Before Rukia had shown up, Ichigo had been in a generally bad mood, due to Yuzu's constantly worsening condition. Now however... well, he was still in a generally bad mood, but it was a less serious bad mood. A more lighthearted one, one that he could actually laugh at. Almost fittingly, in the past few days, Yuzu's condition had improved at a rate that would allow her to come back home soon – which absolutely no one minded.  
Yes, somehow... Ichigo had gotten used to Rukia and his "job" as substitute shinigami.

As the realization of this struck Ichigo, he immediately made a mental note to himself to never, under any circumstances tell any of the thoughts that he just had to Rukia. He was already giving her plenty of reasons to be smug as it was.

At home, nothing out of the ordinary happened: Ichigo had lunch, relaxed for a while, began doing his homework, already getting his hopes up that today would be hollow-free... when suddenly, a sound not unlike that of a ringing cell phone could be heard from his bag. A quick dig through his bag later, Ichigo found out that the source of the noise was the hollow-warning... thing that Rukia had given him before she left. Befitting of the noise it made, it looked just like a cellphone – a cellphone which was had the name of a nearby street on its display.

Sighing, Ichigo once more dug through his bag, until he found something resembling a portable candy dispenser, which contained several small pills: Gikongan, Artificial Soul Pills, as Rukia had explained to Ichigo earlier. Swallowing one of them would remove his soul from his body, replacing it with an artificial soul that would take care of his body while he was off fighting hollows... or so Rukia had claimed. Well, no time to stand around and ponder about whether these things worked or not.

Ichigo took one of the pills and swallowed them – and just as he was told, his soul was removed from his body, and that for once without his body collapsing. In fact, his body was still standing in front of him, seemingly awaiting orders.

"Uh... you just wait here, and... do my homework like I would. You got that?"

His body nodded. Good.

Now he just had to go after that hollow.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Dying had been the best thing that ever happened to Yuusuke. In life, he had been a serial killer, but regrettably limited by law enforcement, by his own weak human body. But in the new body he had found in death, with the new name of "Shrieker" as the shinigami had dubbed him, there was an almost absolute freedom to kill as many pitiful little people as he wanted, growing stronger each time he fed. Life after death was delightful- no shinigami had been able to catch him so far, and most of them didn't even seem to have the strength to fight him.

Yet here he was, bleeding from his side, facing a rookie shinigami with a stupid face of grim grit, wielding a sword too big to possibly be practical, and things were... well, things could be better. Snarling, he let fly a set of small bombs towards the shinigami.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The sound, when it came to her, was the vocal equivalent of that small little movement in the corner of your eye that, when you turn to look, is almost always nothing. Tatsuki was walking home, and hearing the distant roar, almost dismissed it as something else. Something unexplained that probably had a natural explanation, but wasn't really worth dwelling on. Almost.

Why she walked towards the sound, two streets down, she honestly didn't know. Perhaps it was just human curiosity, or perhaps it was to sate that grating feeling that there was something more going on, something she was missing. She had felt it all week, ever since that night at Orihime's, when… she remembered it clearly still, even though she had managed to mostly convince herself it was all a dream. There was no way a monster like that could have been real any more than it could be real that Kurosaki was a heroic monster slayer. She almost wished she had been on drugs; that would have explained it.

So when she heard the sound again, now less distant, it was with a mixture of determination and uncertainty that she peeked round the corner. She blinked, not sure that what she saw was really real. It was Ichigo, in that black getup, with that huge sword, fighting a monster…

And then the monster staggered back, its head turning for a moment towards her. It had no face, only a white, grinning mask, and eyes glowing a menacing yellow. Clasping her hand to her mouth, Tatsuki sunk to her knees in shock. It was really real. That time, a week ago, she and Orihime had actually almost died. Ichigo was… she didn't know what he was, but no human could jump through the air like he was doing right now, not with a sword that big. It was real- it hadn't been a dream, an illusion, or indigestion. There were monsters out there- and Ichigo was involved. Rukia had tried to erase her memory, even.

Collecting herself, Tatsuki turned around and ran, her heart pounding like a jackhammer.

"Don't you want to know what this is all about?" A voice suddenly came from behind her, before she could get too far. Still too worked up to think clearly, Tatsuki turned around slowly.

Standing not too far behind her was a tall and lean-built man, with gray eyes and pale blond hair. He was wearing a dark green shirt and pants, and, more notably, wooden sandals as well a bucket hat striped in white dark green. His facial impression was... hard to read. The only thing that Tatsuki really could make out was that this man was giving her a mysterious smile.

"Wha- what?" Was all that Tatsuki managed to get out, due to both her own fear of what she had just seen, and the vibe that this man was giving off.  
"I was asking if you don't want to know what this all over there is about. There is no need for you to worry; I'm certain that Kurosaki Ichigo will be able to defeat this beast... so I recommend that you stay around a little longer. You will not be disappointed."

"Get away, you freak!" Tatsuki shouted, sprinting away, away from the scene and as far away from the realization that monsters were real as possible.

Quietly, he watched her run.

"Your people skills need work, Kisuke." Said the rough voice he was so used to, coming from behind him.

"I may be genius, but I'm not perfect. She's not yet ripe, I suppose." He said quietly. "Oh well- I can wait. There's plenty of time." He smiled cheerfully.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"DAMN YOU!" Shrieker roared. "You rotten shinigami scum! You dare challenge ME?"

"You talk too much." Ichigo said, letting out a burst of reiatsu, taking a stance. "Are you afraid?"

"Die!" The hollow screamed, letting fly another barrage of bomb leeches. Ichigo leapt to the side, charged, and brought his sword down. The hollow parried with his arm, but Ichigo was already following through on his momentum, slamming a foot in the hollow's gut. The hollow staggered back, and Ichigo raked his blade across the monster's chest. Dark red ichor splashed onto the street, and the hollow retreated back.

It had been like this all fight long. Dodging the bombs was not hard, and it seemed the hollow was too reliant on its special ability by far; up close it was nothing like the ferocity Sora had shown as a hollow. It seemed strange to him how easy it had gotten- he wasn't quite reading him like an open book, but he did manage to anticipate where he'd fire those bombs, when to attack and when not to. This latest set of moves had been repeated five times now, Ichigo having scored injury after injury without taking any in return. The juvenile part of him felt like it was a game, a game he was just learning to master.

The more rational part of him knew that treating it like a game was a good way to get overconfident and die to some unexpected attack. Real life had no checkpoints or quick saves; you got one life, and if you failed there, that was it.

Still, he was doing this. He felt strong. He felt his own reiatsu, and he felt the hollow's reiatsu. It was as if he knew on instinct that his own was stronger; he stepped forward with confidence in his stride. The hesitation he had felt with earlier hollows was gone. If this was what hollow slaying was, then he could do it.

Finally taking the offense, he swung his sword in a rapid series of attacks. The hollow parried with its arms just barely, taking nicks and scratches where the blade landed. Determinedly, he pushed it back. Not a moment's rest; he was not letting go of this advantage.

Then, the hollow- Shrieker- opened his mouth, his tongue coming forward. Point blank, there was no way he could dodge. Not even thinking, Ichigo's right arm shot forward, grabbing it by the tongue. Forcefully, he yanked it, feeling it give way. It ripped in half. The hollow screamed with pain as Ichigo threw the ruptured member to the ground, once again gripping his sword with both arms.

"Damn you, shinigami!" Shrieker swore. "I won't forget this, scum!" The hollow hopped back, and a black tear in the fabric of reality appeared. Ichigo blinked. That was the same kind of portal that he'd seen a week ago, the kind Rukia told him the hollows used to travel back to their homeworld.

"I don't think so!" He said, leaping forward. Quickly, he grabbed the hollow by the shoulder, pulling it back. Shrieker only half fell over, desperately clawing at Ichigo, who was now standing directly in the way of his only escape route. One of his arms found their mark, claws digging into Ichigo's shoulders.

Ichigo simply grabbed him by the wrist, and in one sweeping motion he severed Shrieker's head from his shoulders. This hollow was done for.

What however came next, Ichigo definitely did not see coming: Instead of the hollowing disintegrating and vanishing, out of nowhere, a featureless, large, gray stone gate floating in mid-air took shape behind the hollow.

Slowly, and seemingly all by itself, the doors of the gate opened itself.

Behind it lay nothing, but a deep, black and endless nothing.

All of a sudden, in the center of the gate, a huge lidless white eye formed itself, staring at the hollow.

Cold sweat ran down Ichigo's neck as he watched the scene unfold. Whatever this eye belonged to, it was not human, or belonging to any animal for that matter.

But whatever was going on, it wasn't over yet: The instant the eye fixated itself on the hollow, the darkness surrounding it extended itself outside of the gate, forming countless thin, black tentacles. Slowly but steadily, the darkness-tentacles moved towards Ichigo and the hollow. Despite the strong feeling that trying to do anything against whatever was happening would be futile, Ichigo still got into a position that would make it easy for him to attack the tentacles – or arms, as some of them seemed to end in something resembling hands – should it be necessary.

As Ichigo quickly saw, though, doing so was unnecessary. Neither the eye, nor the tentacles had any interest in him. Instead, one after another, the tentacles began to lay themselves down on the hollow, almost gently... only for all of them to suddenly pull the hollow fiercely back into the gate. The dead, defeated creature could do nothing about it, and was pulled into the darkness that resided within the gate. Once it was in, the doors closed themselves once more, and the gate vanished as suddenly as it appeared.

Ichigo blinked a few times. He was still trying to comprehend what had just happened, and to say that whatever it was had scared him would be an understatement.

"What the hell was that?" Ichigo asked out loud. Having thought out loud instead of outright asking, he did not expect an answer.

But he got one, anyway. "You just said it yourself: Hell. What you have just witnessed was a sinner being pulled through the gate of hell."

Standing behind Ichigo was Rukia, who had apparently sneaked up to him while he was busy being speechless. "Rukia? ...What do you mean by 'hell'?"

"It's just what you think it is. If Soul Society is 'heaven', then a hell must exist as well – and you have just seen the gates of it opening themselves to claim a sinner. A shinigami can only erase the sins that a hollow has committed while it actually was a hollow. The sins that a person has committed while they were still alive are another matter entirely. They cannot be forgiven that simply."

"Urgh... I don't think I want to know any more about that. How did your convincing of this eccentric shinigami go, by the way?"

"Splen-didly!" A voice cheered from behind Ichigo. Ichigo turned around. "Well, she half convinced me. You are mildly interesting for now." The man was thin, with blond hair, a green and white jacket, and a bucket hat obscuring the upper half of his face.

"Who the hell're you?" Ichigo grunted. He was in no mood for jokes.

"Just a handsome store owner." The man said happily. "You handled yourself well there, young man. Handling a vicious hollow like that, after only a few week's training… promising indeed."

"Will you help us or not?"

"I am a busy man, Kurosaki-san," the man said, his voice still chipper, "and I'm not yet convinced you're worth my time."

"Get lost, then. I gotta go home."

"Then lost I will get." The man said, bowing mockingly before turning around, walking away.

"Some help that was." Ichigo said, scowling.

"He's… very particular." Rukia said diplomatically.

"Unhelpful nutjob, you mean."

"Don't be so quick to give in. He might not have admitted it, but you're one of the strongest souls in this town- he's nosy, and he can't help himself. He'll find you again."

"You've dealt with him in the past, or what?"

"He's… mildly infamous among the divisions."

"In a good way or a bad way?"

"Both. He's a smuggler and black market trader, but he also has the best gear and all the right information. He's the kind of person that our intelligence unit appreciates. I only heard about him by reputation before I came here, but he fits his reputation to a tee. And since you are who you are, it's not unreasonable to think he'll keep an eye out."

"What, until I've proven myself?" Ichigo snorted. "What's he getting out of this?"

"Money, probably. If I had access to soul society currency, we'd be working on your reiatsu control right now."

Ichigo shrugged. "Whatever. We're done here, so I am going home."

Rukia nodded. "Yes, let's go home for now."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Shortly before they got back home, Ichigo and Rukia parted ways – Ichigo was in his soul form after all, and needed to return to his body, while Rukia would just enter the house normally. As it turned out, while Ichigo was gone, the artificial soul had managed to finish all of Ichigo's homework, though it remained to be seen if it had actually be done correctly. The concept of an artificial soul that'd just do homework for him sounded too good to be true.

Once more, Ichigo returned to his body, which immediately coughed up the gikongan after he regained senses. Using these things would take some getting used too...

Ichigo was already beginning to look through the homework that the artificial soul had made for him, when suddenly, he heard steps that quickly approached his room's door. Quickly, he moved the hollow-warning... thing and the gikongan out of sight, just as his door opened, and his mother burst into the room. She had a glow about her, one he hadn't seen in a long time.

"Ichigo, come downstairs." She said, smiling widely.

"What?" He said, perplexed.

"Just come on." His mother said, heading down the stairs. Ichigo followed her down, and…

There, on the couch, right next to a small wheelchair, sat Yuzu.

"Hi, Ichi-nii!" she said cheerfully.

"Yuzu…" he said, his chest filling with an overwhelming feeling of relief, happiness and a very unmanly urge to cry.

"The doctors said it's leukemia," his mother said behind him, "but it's not a really bad kind. It's treatable, and they caught it early, they say. She's going to be fine."

Ichigo, at a loss for words, simply dropped to his knees before Yuzu and hugged her gently.

"You had us all worried." He whispered quietly.

"It's fine." Yuzu said, sounding tired but happy. "I'm going back to the hospital soon, and then I'll be all better."

Yes… things were, as a whole, looking up. Saying nothing, Ichigo just held his sister for a while.


	5. Fishing forbidden

**Author's Note:**  
Alternate title to this chapter: "Family business should not be interrupted".

Since last chapter was a bit more on the shorter, filler-ish side of thing, this chapter is a good bit longer to make up for it - that, and it has some new details, as you'll see.

* * *

The alarm clock went off with that irritating, screechy sound it always had, and Ichigo woke up. After suppressing the urge to smash the alarm clock- he really should just use his cellphone for this- he sat up, and looked around the room. He ran a hand through his hair, rubbed his eyes, and yawned. This was Saturday- why wasn't he sleeping in?

Oh.

It was _that _day already, wasn't it?

Getting out of bed, Ichigo put on some clothes, and walked down to have breakfast. Today, the day of days that made his mother so moody each time. The day he and his sisters would go to visit his father's grave.

He never knew him. He had died shortly after Yuzu and Karin had been born, at which point Ichigo was only almost four years old. He knew his name was Isshin, and his mother had described him as tall, dark haired and with a bit of stubble, but strangely there had never been any pictures preserved. He guessed there was more to it than his mother was telling him, but that was a can of worms to open for another day. Still only half awake, he poured himself some coffee- there was a pot of it in the kitchen, still warm- and with that first cup, he moved on to breakfast.

"You're late, nii-chan." It was Karin, scolding him.

"Lay off me." He grunted. "I want to see how you get up on Saturday mornings once you're in college." While it wasn't entirely true that school work had been keeping him up last night – it had actually been a hollow with some very annoying timing – it still made a very valid excuse.

Karin snorted. "Nah, I really doubt that I'll ever forget this day over me being so caught up in school, unlike a certain brother of mine."

"Whatever." Ichigo said, rolling his eyes. "Is Yuzu going to come along with us?"

"Yeah, she was able to convince mom that she was feeling well enough to come. I guess even mom had not allowed, it she'd have come along, anyway... you know how much this day means to her."

Ever since Ichigo had been old enough for his mother to allow him to take care of his sisters for a while, it had been a tradition of sorts between Ichigo, Karin and Yuzu to visit their father's grave on the anniversary of his death. Their mother had only accompanied the three in the years before Ichigo was old enough, and had stayed at home in the years ever since. Ichigo supposed that this was because she preferred grieving by herself, or because she was still bitter towards their father for leaving her alone – he could only guess.

For Ichigo and his sisters, this day had always been one to forget what other problems were plaguing their lives, to spend some quality time as siblings together, and wonder what life would be like if their father were still alive. The fact alone that Yuzu was able to come home in time for this day made him even happier than he already was about her recovery, though he did his best to not show this to anybody (and Rukia in particular).

Yes, today was promising to be a wonderful day, Ichigo thought... when Rukia entered the room, wearing her borrowed pajamas, and looking about as sleepy as Ichigo felt.

"What's with all the ruckus over here, in the middle of the night?" She asked, after letting out a long yawn

The fact that Rukia, of all people, complained about lack of sleep, after only boasting that she barely needed to sleep in her Gigai did fill Ichigo with a certain sense of glee.

"It's almost eleven, Rukia." He said, grinning. "Look outside. The sun's up, and time's a-wasting."

"Whuh?" Rukia said, still not quite awake.

"See ya." Ichigo said, walking out, a smile on his face.

"Whurrur ya goin'…?" Rukia mumbled. "You got some hot date or somethin'?" She yawned wide.

"Sort of. I've got some business to take care of, and it's not something you can interrupt even for a hollow."

"Wait, what?" Rukia said, suddenly sounding sober. "That's not-"

"This is a family thing. Nothing gets in the way, even if it means some souls get lost."

"What, for a date?!" Rukia sneered. "You-"

"Said 'date' involves me pushing Yuzu's wheelchair uphill for several miles uptown." Ichigo said, his tone firm. "This is family business. No interruptions, not for anything."

"Uh… okay?"

"Good." With that, Ichigo walked out. Lunch was packed, and it'd take a while to get to the graveyard.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Rukia watched the three of them leave. Ichigo had seemed so different- so serious, in a more direct way than usual. No snark, no projection of a macho image, just… seriousness. Whatever this was, it meant something to him.

"Rukia-san?"

It was Masaki. The two of them hadn't interacted much, but she seemed like a nice enough person. Putting on her best actor's façade, Rukia chirped,  
"Good morning, Masaki-san!"

"You're wondering what Ichigo goes off for, don't you?" There was nothing accusatory about her tone, but Rukia decided to play it calmly nonetheless.

"Oh, it's none of my business." She smiled wide. "He seemed so serious- it was almost funny!"

"It's so like him, going off to do his own thing, not even telling his friends what it is. He's so…" She shook her head. "He's a lot like his father."

"His father?"

"His… dead father. It's his grave they're going to."

"…oh. I had no idea. I'm so sorry." Rukia said. She knew the father was absent, but she had heard nothing, and had decided not to pry.

"Not as sorry as I am." Masaki said, her voice melancholy. She looked to Ichigo's nightstand. Rukia winced- her glove was lying there, the one she used for emergency shinigami form. She bit her lip as Masaki took a seat on Ichigo's bed, and picked it up.

"So it happened anyway…" Masaki said, and there was the most tragic, pained look on her face.

"Masaki-san?" Rukia said, sounding innocent.

"Kuchiki Rukia." Masaki said. "I knew that family name was familiar the first night you came here; I just couldn't place it. Then it struck me the other day- it was one of the names _he_mentioned from time to time, when he'd had a bit to drink and was a little less secretive."

"I don't understand, Masaki-san-"

"I struggled to keep him away from this, do you realize this? I know what his father was, _shinigami_." Rukia, shocked, simply shut her mouth and kept quiet. Acting could only take her so far. "I know about ghosts. I know about the masked monsters, and the sword-carrying idiots who fight them. You're one of them too." She threw the glove into the wall. "I raised him to not believe in anything that he couldn't see because of it. But now you've come here, and now he's involved in it anyway."

"I- I- I- th-that's absurd, Masaki-san!" Rukia said, her voice almost shrill.

"I do his laundry, Rukia-san." Masaki shook her head. "There's been blood in it this last month, every now and then. First I thought- hell, even _hoped_ he was out fighting thugs, but…" She shook her head. "You stay away from my son, shinigami. If he ends up like his no good father, if he ends up dead doing something amazingly stupid and incredibly heroic, I will _end_you. I don't care what it will take, but I'll get you for it. Understood?"

Stunned, Rukia simply nodded.

"And don't tell Ichigo. He doesn't know that I know, and it stays that way. You're going to find a way out of this, by yourself. My family must stay safe."

"I- it's safer now than it was before!" Rukia blurted out.

Giving Rukia a look of pure venom, Masaki quietly walked out. Looking after her, Rukia swallowed. So far, she had believed that Kurosaki Masaki had just been a gentle, caring mother. Seeing her bare her fangs like this was something that she didn't see coming at all – it did, as a matter of fact, even scare her. Her threat had definitely been effective.  
And how did she, a human, even know the term 'shinigami'? Humans who could see souls weren't unheard of, and it wasn't unbelievable that if she was one of them, she might have seen a hollow or a shinigami- but she had called Rukia what she was, and…  
Had Ichigo's father, too, been a shinigami? That would explain a lot.

But then again, it was still no reason to get all worked up. Despite what Masaki might think, Rukia had no intention to drag Ichigo further into the shinigami business than absolute necessary. It would only be a matter of time before Rukia would regain her own shinigami powers, and once that moment came, she'd off as quickly as possible... at least, that's what she kept telling herself. Just as she had told Ichigo several times already, staying with him in the world of the living was surprisingly fun, a welcome change to the daily routine in her job as shinigami. No matter how fun it was, though, Rukia couldn't allow herself to get too used to the situation, to Ichigo and his friends. She couldn't get too attached to anybody here.

And yet, she had the uncanny feeling that she was failing at this.

Trying to keep her mind off these unpleasant subjects, Rukia's look fell on the glove that Masaki had thrown at the wall. Right now, the only thing, she was alone at home with Masaki, who was quite obviously not in the best of moods... not exactly the most promising premise for this noon. After witnessing Masaki's outburst, Rukia figured that it would be for the better if she were to leave the house, which in itself didn't present too many other options.

Rukia sighed. In the end, there was only one option that was really worth taking it, anyway.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Hey, you three! Wait for me!" A voice echoed through the previously blissfully silent street, all the way to Ichigo, Karin and Yuzu. Trying his best not to grimace, Ichigo stopped, and turned around, Karin following suit. Just as Ichigo had feared, the voice did indeed belong to Rukia, who was following the three of them, sprinting so that she would be able to catch up with them.

"Kuchiki-san? What are you doing here?" Karin asked once had caught up to them, and was catching her breath, while Ichigo was doing his best to suppress the urge of hitting her on the head for disturbing him today, of all days.

"I thought... I could use this... opportunity... to see some more... Japanese culture... if you... don't mind, that is." Rukia replied, while panting heavily. At least she didn't exhaust her ability to come up with decent lies on the fly...

"That's a wonderful idea!" Yuzu exclaimed, who had taken quite a liking in Rukia. "Can she come along, Ichi-nii? Please?"

Ichigo grit his teeth. With Yuzu asking him, it was already as good as decided – he'd never be able to turn down any of her requests. "Well, as long as she doesn't disturb us too much, I don't see why not..." He said, giving Rukia a meaningful look.

"Don't worry, I'll try my best to not disturb you three." Rukia assured, with an equally meaningful look. Good. At least she'd try.

What followed this were several minutes of a fairly awkward silence, in which Ichigo was pushing Yuzu's wheelchair, with Rukia walking besides him, and Karin walking besides her sister.

"Say, Kuchiki-san..:" Yuzu suddenly interrupted the silence "do you have any siblings yourself? Any brother or sisters?"

Before she answered, Rukia hesitated for a moment. "I... do, actually. I have a brother who's... several years older than me. He... already has a job, but he lives rather close to my home."

Ichigo quickly turned his head towards Rukia, a questioning look on his face. Without looking at him, Rukia nodded – so she was apparently speaking the truth, and really had an older brother at this Soul Society place?

"Oh, really? What does he work as, Kuchiki-san?" Yuzu asked cheerfully.

"He is... working for the military. He has a... fairly high rank for his age and always has lots of things to do, so I don't exactly see him very often." Even though Rukia was speaking rather slowly, clearly trying to think of ways to best paraphrase everything in unsuspicious terms, Ichigo couldn't help but to notice that there was a hint of... well, something in her voice. Bitterness? Disappointment?

"Oh, I see... then, what is he like, your brother? Is he similar to you?"

Again, Rukia hesitated a bit before she replied. "I suppose... he does look a tiny bit similar to me. As far as personality goes, though, he's... different. He is usually very distant, and barely shows his emotions. He's also... very strict, and takes... family traditions very seriously."

"Sounds like he has a stick up his ass." Ichigo grunted.

"Ichi-nii!" Yuzu chided.

"No, I… I suppose you would put it that way. He's very strict, but he's a good person."

"See?" Yuzu said. "There's nothing wrong with being a bit traditional."

"There's a lot wrong with that…" Ichigo said quietly, scowling at Rukia.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, Yuzu…" Ichigo couldn't possibly say anything against Yuzu; he hadn't the heart. Grudgingly, he pushed the wheelchair, and with Rukia in tow, the four of them headed toward the Karakura graveyard. After they had gone a mile or so, Ichigo stopped, stepping aside.

"Ichi-nii?" Yuzu said.

"I just need to catch my breath a bit." Ichigo said, stepping back just long enough that he could speak quietly to Rukia without his sisters hearing, pulling her along with him. Karin raised ana eyebrow, but stayed with Yuzu.

"So what do you think you're doing?" Ichigo said. "This is a family matter, I _told_you-"

"I know why you're going." Rukia said plainly. "Your mother told me."

"So what? It's still none of your business!"

"You're going to a graveyard. It's not unlikely there will be a ghost, and where's there's prey there's predators. What will you do if a hollow comes down on your sisters, huh?"

"I have a gikongan."

"Oh? Where?"

"Right here." Ichigo dug in his pocket. When he seemed to find nothing, he dug deeper, finally letting out a curse.

"What would you do without me, Ichigo?" Rukia said, holding up the gikongan, which she had brought with her from his room.

"Live my life like a normal college student?" Ichigo grumbled. "Fine- you can come with, but when we get to dad's grave, you stay away."

"Of course." Rukia nodded. "I know we don't always get along that well, but… I'm not going to intrude. My manners aren't that bad."

"Good." Ichigo said, and walked back to the wheelchair. Even though the sun was shining down relentlessly on Ichigo and the others, temperatures were rather high, and pushing Yuzu's wheelchair was exhausting him more than any of his recent fights did, Ichigo did not complain. He wouldn't have it any other way, not today.

The Karakura graveyard was located on a hall at the outskirts of the village, surrounded by a small forest. Since the graveyard was fairly remote, it was barely visited, and today was no exception to this: Ichigo, Yuzu, Karin and Rukia were the only people on the graveyard. Save for their footsteps, and the noises causes by Yuzu's wheelchair, the place was entirely silent.

As it turned out, the pathways between the graves were too narrow for the wheelchair, so that Yuzu had to walk by herself, supported by Karin and Ichigo. Just Rukia had promised, she stayed behind with the wheelchair, and let the siblings go to their father's grave by themselves. Once they got to the grave, the three of them sat down, and began to pray for their father... well, Karin and Yuzu did. Ichigo just sat there, and stared at the grave. In the previous years, he would always pray for his father, like his sisters did, but now, that he knew what the afterlife was like... was there really a point in doing so? Could these prayers even reach Soul Society, and tell the deceased people that their loved ones still cared for them?

Suddenly remembering something, Ichigo stood up. "Could you two please wait here for a moment? I just remembered that there's something that I wanted to ask Kuchika-san."

Not even awaiting their answer, Ichigo left his sisters, and walked back to Rukia, who was still waiting for them at the wheelchair – well out of Yuzu's and Karin's hearing range.

"Hm? Is something the matter, Ichigo?" Rukia asked, as she saw Ichigo approach him.

"Well, sort of." He said quietly, as to not alarm Yuzu and Karin. "I just remembered something that I have been meaning to ask you for a while now, but that I never really got around to ask you."

"And... what would that be?"

"A quite simple question, actually. In that Soul Society place of yours, did you ever run across somebody named 'Kurosaki Isshin'? Tall, dark haired guy, has a bit of a stubble, smokes?"

For just a second, he could see something like hesitation. A sharp intake of breath, probably involuntary- and then she replied, sounding as natural as ever,

"…no."

"Not a one?"

"Your father is probably up there, Ichigo- along with billions and billions of more souls. The Soul Society is a large place, and most people don't find one another in the afterlife."

Ichigo took a good, hard look at her. If something was off, she wasn't showing it. "So… it's a happy place up there, only you don't get to spend it with your family?"

Rukia made a face. "I really shouldn't be telling you details- but yes, it's not really ideal. Most souls tend to lose memory when they pass, too- souls usually form adoptive families or small clans instead. Wherever your father is, he probably isn't lonely."

"…that's good, then." Ichigo said at last.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help." She sighed. "I'm sorry to break your illusions of what the afterlife's like."

Ichigo shrugged. "Before this, I didn't even believe there was one. It's still a good place, right?"

"Most of the time." Rukia said quietly. "It uh, is a bit like life here on earth."

"So you die only to live the same shit twice? If there is a god, he has a twisted sense of humor." Ichigo grunted. "Never mind- I'm going to go pay my respects. See you."

With that, Ichigo walked over to his father's grave, saying a silent prayer to whatever deity might listen.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Once the three of them had finished their prayers, they left their father's grave behind, and made their way to the grave's shrine together with Rukia. Since the way to the graveyard took them a rather long time, Ichigo and his sisters would stay a little while before they headed home. Today was no different from this – due to the high temperatures, and Ichigo having to push Yuzu's wheelchair, staying around to rest for a while was even more necessary.  
The general atmosphere on the graveyard was wonderfully calm, Yuzu and Karin were caught up in a sisterly conversation, and Ichigo was already considering to just take a nap... when suddenly Rukia demanded his attention by poking Ichigo. Not for the first time, Ichigo began to wonder just how exactly she always managed to have something to talk about when he just wanted to relax, or otherwise mind his own business – it was as if she had a sixth sense, just for detecting these opportunities.

As Ichigo gave her the kind of glare that he, over the past few weeks, had more or less reserved for her, Rukia gestured away from Yuzu and Karin, seemingly wanting to talk about something that they shouldn't be hearing. Carefully, as to not catch Yuzu's or Karin's attention, Ichigo and Rukia moved slowly away from them, and went away from the shrine.

Once both of them were gone, Yuzu and Karin interrupted their conversation, and looked in the direction that Ichigo and Rukia had gone.

"Soo... they really are together, aren't they?" Yuzu stated more than she asked.

Karin nodded. "Pretty much. And they're still trying to fool everyone, as if we didn't see them act like an old couple..."

"Should we go after them?" Yuzu suggested.

"Nah, not yet. First, we eat."

"What is that you want this time? Did you receive another mission? I thought I told you; today I'm not doing anything like that today! And just how the hell does it come that these things always attack when it's the most inconvenient for me?! I need some time to relax, dammit! I swear, one of these days you'll walk in on me using the toilet, just because you got a mission!" Ichigo loudly complained.

"Calm down, Ichigo! I didn't get a mission, not this time."

"Then what else is wrong?"

"Well, nothing is wrong per se, it's just... there's something weird about this graveyard. It's too empty. Normally, on a graveyard of this size, there's at least two or three spirits roaming about, but this one... it's absolutely empty. As if there's something here that has disposed of all the spirits."

"Or this graveyard just so happens to have no spirits at all." Ichigo rolled his eyes. "God, to drag me all the way out here, just because you had a suspicion..."

"Take this seriously!" Rukia snapped. "This is a graveyard- there should be spirits here! Plenty of them too! Doesn't this tell you something?"

"Could be natural."

"Could be, but _highly unlikely_. Think, Ichigo. If there's a hollow here, then it's not just you and I, but your sisters too who are at risk!"

That got his attention, at last. "I won't let them be hurt."

"Good." Rukia nodded. "This is exactly why I came. Hollows can pop up any time, and they don't care about respects or special dates."

"Is there any way to tell?" Ichigo flexed a little, feeling uncomfortable. "I don't want to interrupt this, not today..."

"If I had my powers, I could probably sense it. You can't."

"I could try."

"Wouldn't work if it was hiding in its home dimension until it was time to hunt, anyway." Rukia shook her head. "Be on the alert. That's all we can do for now. I'll keep an eye out."

"Right." Ichigo said. "So, I should head back-"

He was cut off by a cry, a muffled scream coming from the shrine. The noise was abrupt, and stopped as soon as it had begun, but it was enough to set Ichigo off. "Gikongan! Give me that damn pill, right now!" He said sharply. Rukia fumbled with her pocket, quickly pulling out the gikongan. Ichigo snatched it from her, almost choking on the pill as it went down. As he popped out of his body, he rushed towards the shrine.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Karin couldn't breathe. That thing, whatever it was, was pressing her down to the ground. She had cried out, but had had the air knocked out her lungs. She looked around quickly, struggling feebly against the overwhelming power holding her down- Yuzu was at least untouched for now, though it looked like she had fainted?  
_Ichigo, where are you?!_

But just as it had to be expected, no help, no answer came. The thing – an enormous, green hamster-like monstrosity with talons for legs, a limb resembling a tentacle hanging from its forehead, and an eerily grinning white mask for its face – slowly lifted Karin up, and, to hear even greater shock, began to speak.

"_Today must be my lucky day! To believe that a human with such a spiritual pressure would pass by... you will make a fine meal!_" The creature screeched.

Closing its grasp around Karin, the creature slowly lifted her off the ground, raised her at least three feet into the air... before violently smashing her into the ground. A fierce pain, worse than anything that she ever felt in her entire life, shot through her body, and somehow she _knew_that that hit had broken some bones.

And then, suddenly the pain was gone, and... Karin was looking down on her body?

What was going on?

But there was no time for wondering about that. Once again, the monster made its move to get hold of Karin – her conscious self. Fear dominating her entire thinking, Karin simply turned around, and started to run – when suddenly, a black flash shot past her, towards the monster!

"GET AWAY FROM THEM!"

Ichigo slammed into the creature foot first, sending it backwards. The creature staggered, stepping back, away from his sisters.

"_Shinigami?_" The creature sounded delighted, almost gleeful. "_It's been too long since one of you tried to take me-_"

"SHUT UP!" Ichigo roared, swinging his sword down, hard. Somehow, his rage-fueled reiatsu created a wave of raw power, slamming into the creature. It reeled, grunting with what sounded more like annoyance than fear.

"_Power too, eh?_" It began stepping to the side, circling Ichigo. "_Oh, but it isn't even close to tempered, is it?_"

"I said SHUT UP!" Ichigo said, charging towards the creature, slashing, hacking. The creature dodged, surprisingly nimble for a creature so big and bulky. It lashed out, but Ichigo had been expecting a counterattack. Catching the paw with his blade, he redirected the blow, and hopped forward. Counterattacking, he sank his blade into the beast's shoulder. The creature grunted.

"_Not bad._" It shrugged, removing the sword from its flesh- the cut hadn't been deep, apparently. "_For a fly that can't even cut me hard enough that I feel it, that is._" The creature lunged forward with surprising speed, slamming its paw against Ichigo. He just barely stopped it from grabbing him, instead being sent flying. "_Good sport, though. I think I'll play with you before I eat those little girls._"

"THE HELL YOU WILL!" Ichigo shouted, just barely landing on his feet. "I'll kill you, you hear? I'll split your ugly mask in two!"

"_Talk is cheap._" The hollow said, again circling Ichigo.

"Ichigo, be careful!" Rukia shouted from afar. "I know it- that's Grand Fisher, and he's killed many shinigami in his time!"

"_So I am famous, too?_" Fisher said bemusedly. "_You'd think they would have sent something better than this, though._"

"I'll be more than enough." Ichigo spat, before he wildly charged at the hollow once more. He still remembered Rukia warning him once that fighting while angry is not the smartest thing to do, but right now, that did not matter to him. That bastard had put his sisters into danger, and Ichigo would make sure that he would pay for it.

Intending to shatter the monster's mask, Ichigo jumped upwards just a few feet before the hollow, attempting to finish it in one single rising slash-!  
Only to be knocked out of the air by a strike of the beast's talons. With some serious trouble, Ichigo barely managed to land on his feet. After the last hit, his entire body was aching... he really should have listened to Rukia. Forcing himself to calm down, Ichigo got into a defensive stance, intending to figure out Grand Fisher's attack pattern, and seek for openings.

"_Weak. Weak and pathetic. Have the shinigami really lowered their standards to a point where they accept weaklings like you amidst them? The shinigami that I killed might have had less raw power than you, but they were infinitely more skilled. You are boring._" Grand Fisher taunted. Ichigo, determined not to let the monstrosity's words get to him, grit his teeth.

"_And you don't even have anything to say for yourself, shinigami? You really are boring. Perhaps I should skip the part of toying with you, and just finish you off right away, and eat those girls... or perhaps, I should beat you within an inch of your life, and have you watch me eat them? I do fancy a bit of company while I have my meal, you see._"

Ichigo stopped thinking. Being told in theory that you shouldn't let your emotions get the better of you was one thing, but standing face-to-face with a monster that somehow knew just what to say to get him angry was another thing entirely. Once more, Ichigo charged at Grand Fisher. He didn't have any sort of strategy planned out, nor had he any ideas on how to evade the hollow's counter-attacks, but that didn't matter to him. Behind him, he could hear Rukia scream something at him, but he ignored her. The only thing that mattered was to kill Grand Fisher.

Lashing out in a furious set of strikes, his arms moving faster than he thought possible- his muscles burned, but he didn't even notice- he struck, struck, struck- and for just a moment, Fisher seemed to be at bay. Roaring, Ichigo swung his blade in a broad sweep once more, and finally hit, sinking it into the hideous creature's left shoulder. Fisher groaned, but his right paw shot out, grabbing Ichigo by the arm. The oppressive force of his hand felt like it would crush him to the bone.

"LET GO!" Ichigo screamed. "I'll KILL you! KILL!"

Ignoring him, Fisher lifted him by the arm, and slammed him into the ground. Ichigo lost his breath; he would have cried out, but found himself unable to. Quickly, Fisher put a foot on his legs, pinning him to the ground.

"_Not bad, kid,_" Fisher said malevolently. "_I'll take my time with you- I'll break your arms and legs, and then I'll make you watch when I eat those girls, one limb at a time._"

"Talk is cheap!" Ichigo shot back. Provoking the beast was probably not a good idea, but Ichigo wasn't thinking in a very rational way at the moment. "You'll need that mouth to scream when I've broken free!"

"_Oh, I do like a bit of spirit,_" Fisher said, "_it makes it all the much sweeter when they break._"

He sounded like something out of a rather badly written shonen manga, but it didn't quite matter- he meant what he said, and the fact that he was losing begun to sink into Ichigo. He squirmed, fought, but the weight of the hollow was pinning him down firmly. He blazed his reiatsu, hoping to perhaps overpower it- but the creature seemed to have at least as much of it as he did. It was pointless.  
So, was he to die here? His mother would be heartbroken, but dying wouldn't be so terrible if only his sisters were safe. They weren't. Desperately, he punched at the hollow's arm, trying to make it let go, trying to reach that sword. It was pointless. The grip was too strong, the hollow too heavy. Up until now, each one of them had been something he could handle, but… this was something else entirely.

"My, my," The voice was relaxed, sounding almost amused, "I hope you will learn from this, Kurosaki-san. This is the sort of thing that happens if you charge in recklessly. Going berserk works better in the movies, I am afraid."

"_The hell're you?_" Fisher grunted. Ichigo turned his face around, and even though the angle was bad, he could see him, standing right next to the hollow. White and green coat, cane, bucket hat, clogs…

"Hat and clogs!" Ichigo cried, "please, get my sisters to safety, please!"

"And what about yourself?"

"_I said, __**who the hell are you?**_" Fisher growled, not too pleased with being ignored.

"Do shut up, Fisher-san," the man said dismissively, "this doesn't concern you. We are trying to have a conversation here."

"_Die!_" The hollow roared, lashing out with its free arm, It might as well have tried to move a boulder- somehow, the blow simply redirected.

"As I said, this doesn't concern you." The man smiled, looking infuriatingly confident.

"_That does it,_" Fisher growled, letting go of Ichigo, standing up before the man- was it Urahara? "_I don't know who you are, but I'll kill you too._"

"Come at me, bro." Urahara said, grinning. Urahara said, grinning. "I'm ready whenever you are, dear sir."

This time, Grand Fisher didn't even bother to respond. Instead, he simply lashed out with his talons, trying to shred Urahara with his claws. The man, still grinning, didn't move an inch, even when the talons where just mere inches away from him – which might also have something to do with the beast stopping it just before it reached Urahara. Instead of hitting Urahara with the full force, Grand Fisher instead... extended his claws and penetrated Urahara's flesh with them?!

"Hat and clogs!" Ichigo screamed, as the man wavered from the unexpected injury.

"_This is only the beginning, you bastard!_" Grand Fisher screamed, as he pulled back his claw. He then lowered his head-tentacle, and grabbed hold of it with the talon that he had used to injure Urahara, before removing it again.

While Ichigo wasn't sure what he had expected the hollow to be planning with this, he definitely did not expect what he saw now.

In place of the lure-like tentacle now stood a beautiful, dark-skinned woman with purple hair, wearing the exact same clothes as Ichigo. As she looked down on Urahara, an enormous, psychotic grin spread across her face.

"_Yes, not so high and mighty now, are you, you bastard? In front of me, all of you shinigami are the same. All of you have friends, family, loved ones, people that you would never dare to harm. My claws search for this people in your mind, in your heart, and my lure copies them! This woman... she's a friend of yours? I hope you enjoy the thought of being killed by a friend!_" Grand Fisher spoke in a smug tone, using both his own mouth, and the mouth of the copy (if it was a copy) that he created.

But had Grand Fisher expected Urahara to break like Ichigo, and fall into despair, his hopes were betrayed: When the shop owner replied, his voice was just as bemused as it had been before. "Hmm, this is certainly quite unexpected." He said calmly, as if his injuries were nothing but a minor nuisance. "I certainly wasn't expecting a hollow like you to boast such a useful ability, but I suppose it does explain how you were able to kill shinigami at all."

As he spoke, he raised the cane that he was carrying with him, and pulled it aside, revealing a blade within it. "I do thank you for helping my research in that regard, but I suppose your cooperation will end with that. I bid you adieu, Fisher-san! May your soul have wonderful bleaching."

"_WHY, YOU LITTLE-!_" Grand Fisher roared, as he himself now madly charged at Urahara – only for the shop keeper to vanish in front of the monster, and reappear behind it!

"Your little copy technique has one glaring weak spot: Not every shinigami would be completely immobilized by your copies. Being realistic is also an option." Holding his free hand out, he said, "Bakudo sixty-three: Sajo sabaku."  
From out of nowhere, giant, glowing chains formed, encasing Fisher completely, binding all of his legs.

"_What?_" Fisher roared, struggling against his binds. "_You damn, dirty, cheap shinigami bastard! I'll tear your face off!_"

"Don't struggle; you'll only tire yourself." Urahara said with a matter-of-fact tone. "You're stronger by far than your average hollow, but compared to me… well, you're small fry. You're not going to break a level sixty-three binding spell."

Rukia, staring from where she was- she had been busy re-inserting Karin into her own body, and administering a memory overwrite- gaped. A successful level sixty-three bakudo, deployed in seconds? That- that was captain level of skills, at least with regards to skill. Who the hell was he, really?

Roaring with frustration, Grand Fisher let out his lure one more time, the beautiful, dark-skinned woman appearing once more. Urahara looked at it for a couple of seconds, and then promptly sliced it in half.

"_You… you cut your friend without even hesitating…_" Fisher sounded genuinely shocked.  
"I cut a dummy." Urahara said flatly. "Unless skills have dropped terribly within the Gotei Juusantai, no one higher ranked officer would be fooled by a trick like this. I have to admit, it is a very interesting ability, though…" he looked closer, smiling mischievously, "say, I think I'll let you live after all. In my basement, that is. We're going to learn a whole lot, you and I." He gave a whistle, and approaching from further down the graveyard were two children, and one middle-aged, muscular man with brown hair tied up into braids.

"Boss?" The man said.

"Take this creature back to the store. Make sure it is secured in the basement."

"Roger!" The man said, and hoisted the hollow up over his shoulder effortlessly, despite it being nearly ten times his size.

"_Wait! What are you going to do to me?!_" Fisher roared, thrashing helplessly.

"Quiet, beast!" The muscular man said, carrying the hollow away and out of sight.

"Are you all right, Kurosaki-san?" Urahara said, still smiling. "Not hurt? Any injuries, broken bones?"

"…no." Ichigo said sullenly. "Give it two more minutes though, and I would have. Thanks, I guess."

"Yes, I was watching, and it looked like you needed help. I have some interest in you after all, Kurosaki-san."

"You watched?" Ichigo said, incredulous. "You saw this monster- you knew it was here, and you could take it so easily- and you let it attack my sisters?"

"Your sisters are fine, Kurosaki-san. Have you no faith in your ability to protect them?"

"Don't fuckin' joke around!" Ichigo said, grabbing Urahara by the collar. "They coulda died, and you would've done nothing? What the hell kind of person are you?"

"It's not my job, Kurosaki-san." Urahara said calmly.

"Your _job_?" Ichigo shouted. "They- they could have died, and you don't even care?"

"And what should I do, Kurosaki-san? Be the hero? Step up, strike a pose and save the day?" He sounded snide. "Hollows alone kill hundreds of people every day. If I began saving the world, I wouldn't make a difference, and I'd have time for nothing else."

"How the hell does anybody get so cold?"

"Cold has nothing to do with it. If you want to find the strength to protect your sisters-"

"Fuck you!" Ichigo said, unhanding him. "I don't need you. I don't need that kind of help- go dissect that monster instead!" With that, Ichigo turned heel, and walked back towards his body, past Rukia. By the time he had gotten back into his body, he realized that what he had said was almost like a complete mirror of what it had been like, weeks back, when Rukia first convinced him to help.  
…how had he ended up this way?

* * *

oOo

* * *

Just as it had been on their way to the graveyard, their way back home was plagued by a silence that could only be described as awkward. Unlike how it was before, though, the mood surrounding this silence was of a more low-spirited nature. While Yuzu and Karin had, thanks to Rukia's memory modification, no memories of what had happened, the memory was still very much present in Ichigo and Rukia. For whatever reason, the events at the graveyard seemed to have gotten Ichigo brooding, as he was walking several feet behind Yuzu, Karin (who was pushing Yuzu's wheelchair on the way back) and Rukia.

This, however, was not lost on Yuzu and Karin.

"Say, Kuchiki-san... could you please look after Ichi-nii, and ask him what is wrong? He has been so down ever since we left the graveyard..." Yuzu asked, completely taking Rukia by surprise.

"Ehh? Why me? You are his sisters; you should know him better than I do!" Rukia tried to talk her way out of it, even though she was already beginning to see why Ichigo had such trouble disagreeing with Yuzu: She was just the kind of sweet young girl that one simply couldn't say 'no' to.

"I know, but... it's just that you already seem to understand him very well, Kuchiki-san. You come along just nice, so I'm sure he'll tell you what's wrong." Yuzu insisted.

"Oh, alright... I'll see what I can do." Rukia finally gave in, sighing. She then stopped dead in her tracks, and let Yuzu and Karin get ahead, while she waited for Ichigo. The teen didn't even seem to notice her, as he continued to walk slowly, his hands in his pockets, and his gaze fixed at the ground.

There was no helping it: Ichigo really needed somebody to talk to, that much was certain to Rukia. "Listen Ichigo, I know that what happened with Grand Fisher and Urahara-san has gotten to you, but you can't just mope like that. Your sisters are getting worried about you, and I don't think that you want to have them worry about you today- or do you?"

Ichigo did not respond right away, and instead continued walking, his eyes still fixed on the ground in front of him. Rukia, not wanting to return to Yuzu and Karin just like that, walked by his side, constantly looking at him. When Ichigo after a short while finally did say something, his voice was surprisingly silent and... calm. "Look at me, always talking all high and mighty... you know, until now, I considered fighting these hollows as kind of a joke, and I kept wondering how you could do so badly against that thing a few weeks back. And then, when it all comes down, I can't even protect my own sisters... I really am just a weak and arrogant human who has stumbled into a grim tale of reapers, aren't I?"

"Ichigo, you're anything but weak. Like I told you, you have amazing reiatsu for a human. In fact, there's plenty of shinigami graduating from Shinigami Academy that would do anything to have such a-"

"I don't mean that sort of strength. I'm talking about emotional strength here... all it took that hollow was some taunts, and I was already unable to even have any clear thoughts. If he had taken me seriously, and used the same power that he had used on hat and clogs, I wouldn't have been able to do a thing... mother, Yuzu, Karin, my friends, or even my father... if he had transformed into any of them, I would have been done for." He shook his head slightly. "I would never be able to cut them down... I'm just human, and not some sort of emotionless fighting machine."

Rukia didn't say anything in response. To hear Ichigo, who so far had always been snarky, a tad arrogant, but serious when the times call for it, to see him humble and thoughtful like this... was just unexpected.

"I have made a decision, Rukia." He then said after Rukia had stayed silent for a short while. "I'll learn how to contain my – you called it reiatsu? I'll learn how to contain that, with or without that bastard's help. Even if you can only explain it to me in theory, even if I have to ignore my homework to finally get this right." He finally raised his head, and looked at the clear sky above them. "Even if it is just for as long as you don't have your powers, I don't want to endanger those that are close to me. I want to be able to protect them, until they no longer need me for that."

Rukia stared at Ichigo, slightly bewildered. "What has gotten into you? If I didn't know it any better, I'd say that Grand Fisher hit your head at some point during all this. Acting all humble and determined like that... that just isn't like you."

Ichigo chuckled. "You think? I suppose he must have at least knocked some sense into me during all this... c'mon, let's get back to Yuzu and Karin."

* * *

oOo

* * *

At the Urahara shoten meanwhile, a certain shopkeeper had finally arrived back home, after making sure that Grand Fisher was safely stored under the shop.

"I'm hoome~!" He shouted as he entered.

To any observer, him announcing his return would seem more than odd – except for a black cat lying on the floor, the entire shop was completely. But then again, no normal observer would ever expect the cat to reply, either.

"Already, hm? So how did it go?" The feline asked with a male, and surprisingly low human voice.

"I suppose you could call it fairly interesting, mhm. The young Kurosaki still is fairly reckless... if it weren't for my timely help, he would have been in some serious trouble against that hollow that lurked on the graveyard."

"I'm not surprised. He is just a human with shinigami powers, after all. How exactly did that hollow cause him trouble?"

"He taunted him. This hollow didn't even take him seriously... if it had used its own power against him, he would have been completely done for."

"What power did it have?"

"Does, my dear Yoruichi-san, not did. I decided to bring that hollow along for some good old research, you see. As for its power... it can search its victim's memories for people that are dear to them, and create a copy against them. It is a moderately useful power, but nothing that a skilled shinigami couldn't overcome."

"I see... and what about the young Kurosaki? Did he agree to being trained by you?"

Slightly embarrassed, Urahara scratched his head. "Sadly, no. He took some offense to me watching his battle, and waiting for the right moment to intervene. I suppose I will have to ask him again at a later time."

The cat, Yoruichi, sighed. "Again? Honestly, Kisuke, it's just like I told you: Your people skills are terrible."

"Well, whatever." Urahara said, dismissing the criticism. "I have no intent on giving up that easily... then again, he isn't the only potential I've set my sights on."

* * *

**Author's Note:**  
Dun-dun-duuuun!  
. . .Yes, that is all that I have to say for now.


	6. The spotlight should be shared

**Author's Notes:**  
Well, that was faster then expected, huh. I suppose this happens when your co-writer is very much motivated. But oh well, I suppose people won't complain, even though this chapter is a bit on the short side.  
On a side note however, I threw together a simplistic little cover for this story. Isn't it beautiful? No? Yeah, that's what I thought.

* * *

It was Saturday, and Tatsuki stared out over an empty street, trying to find some peace of mind. She had been to karate practice, she had gone to the mall, and nothing seemed to distract her well enough. Everything had changed, and she couldn't seem to be rid of it.

"It" being these… she had no word for it. _Weird_ would be the best word for it. She remembered that night, weeks ago, when she and Orihime had been attacked, when Ichigo and Rukia were there, fighting it…  
And ever since then, she had begun to see them. Spirits. People with no visible legs, and chains coming from out their chests. Some were horribly wounded; blood over their faces, limbs torn off, and others still were appearing perfectly healthy except from the sad circumstance of being dead.

At first, Tatsuki had freaked out. She had checked her family records for any history of mental illness- none to be found. Eventually she had calmed down, trying to ignore them- but she couldn't. There always seemed to be one spirit or another around, old, young, boy, girl…  
And on top of that, there were those monsters. The masked ones, taking all sorts of different, equally terrifying forms. She was overcome with fear every time she saw one- it made her furious as soon as she regained her senses, but fear was all that was left when she saw one. She was strong. She was probably the strongest girl her age in all the nation, for all she knew- and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. Hell, she could have been built like Schwarzenegger, and it still would make no difference.

And they were _right there_. They would pop up, and soon after, there would be fewer ghosts around. And she could do nothing.

So here she was, sitting on a bench at a back street, trying to make sense of an increasingly insane world. Why couldn't she have normal problems? Why couldn't she be jealous of some up-and-coming karate star better than herself? Why couldn't she be suffering heartache from being in love with somebody who was always taken? Why did it have to be monsters?

After she had more or less come to terms with being able to see... this all, she had begun following Ichigo arround whenever she saw him in this weird black uniform. Even though Tatsuki didn't like the thought of stalking her own best friend, following him seemed to be the only way to find something out about what was going. After all, Ichigo seemed to be source of this madness – him, and this Kuchiki Rukia. In regards to her, Tatsuki had become increasingly wary, as well: While at first, she had been able to simply accept the origins that the girl gave her, after watching Ichigo fight one of these masked monsters for a second time, Tatsuki had decided to look up how legit these origins could be.

As it turned out, while her being of German origin wasn't too unlikely (a town named Düsseldorf had a fairly big Japanese minority), Rukia's description of Sweden couldn't have been more wrong: The only place where you could even see a living polar bear in that country was a zoo. In retrospect, paying some more attention during geography lessons sure would have payed off...

But even so: Just who – or what – _was_Kuchiki Rukia? More than once, Tatsuki had considered just outright confronting Ichigo, and ask him about all these things, but whenever the thought came up, she immediately dismissed it. These days, Rukia seemed to follow Ichigo around as if she was his magical girlfriend or something, and there was no telling how she would react if she found out that Tatsuki was aware of she and Ichigo was doing. After all, that girl had completely changed Orihime's memories of the events regarding the beast that attacked her at home – Rukia could just end up doing the same when Tatsuki would confront Ichigo. No, that was out of the question.

Having been able to somewhat overcome her fear in regards to the masked monsters, Tatsuki did not run away the next time she saw Ichigo fight one of them. She instead made sure to stay out of his sight, and spied on him, trying to hear if Ichigo or Rukia somehow said something that would allow her to make sense of this all, something that would explain why Ichigo had become a ghost samurai.

From her hiding place, she coulds only make out snippets of Ichigo and Rukia's conversation. It was enough to make out that they were a good enough team, though. The tone of their voice as they spoke to one another, their body language- relaxed, casual, and though bantering back and forth, they approached the situation calmly.  
Ichigo walked up, brandishing his sword, face to face with the monster- and in a flash, he had dodged its first attack, parried the next, then counterattacked and severed its arms. Shortly and promptly, he brought his sword down on its mask, and it disintegrated.

What in the hell had happened? Since when could Ichigo move with such ease, such speed, while carrying a greatsword? Had Rukia somehow transformed him, given him power? There was no sense to make of this, yet it was happening before her very eyes.

Ichigo had always been strong. He'd learned his karate, and it had stuck. She knew he excercised, ate well, and sometimes got into fights- always coming out on top- but this was beyond any of that.

Back in the present, Tatsuki shook her head. What grated the most on her wasn't the fear, the madness of this new world, that her friend was lying to her- it was that they were strong, she was weak and there was nothing she could do about it. She had no way of protecting Orihime.

As if to undermine her thoughts, she heard it once more – the distinct roar that these monsters with the white masks gave off, coming from a nearby place, maybe a street or two away. For a minute or so, Tatsuki just continued sitting on the bench, as if she had heard nothing. Then, slowly, hesitatingly, she got up, and walked towards the source of the roar. She doubted that watching another one of these beasts would do her any good, but she didn't feel like she could just sit there, knowing that one of these monsters would attack somebody.

Just as she had guessed, this particular monster was just a street away. As Tatsuki looked around the corner, unwilling to go any closer out of concern for safety, she could see the beast close in on the ghost of an old man, who tried his best to get away from it, with little success. As much as she hated it, Tatsuki could only stand around, watch, and hope for Ichigo and Rukia to arrive and kill the monster.

But they didn't come.

The old man tripped and fell, and Ichigo was still nowhere to be seen. The beast moved its enormous body closer to the old man, opening its mouth wide...

Tatsuki stepped out of her cover. She knew that she had no power, no means to fight these things, but she couldn't just stand there and watch as it killed the old man.

"Get away from him!" She screamed, as she rushed towards the old man and the monster. The beast slowly turned its head towards the disturbance...

Only to be pierced by a blue ray of light from behind!

The monster screamed, its forearm blown clean off, blood splattering over the street. It fixed its eyes on Tatsuki, raised its remaining claw and posed to strike-  
And once again, the ray of blue light came down, this time blasting clean through the monster's skull. The monster's cry dissipated into nothing as it dissolved.

Gasping, Tatsuki looked around. There were more people like Ichigo? Where? Looking around, she saw a figure on a distant rooftop, clad in white. She could just barely make out a blue glow, and a black head of hair- and then he was gone.

Not stopping to wonder, Tatsuki hurried over to the old man. The spirit seemed unharmed, but confused. Without a word, it floated away, still frightened.

"My, my," she could hear a slow clap, "I do believe I've found myself a hero, right here." It was that guy- the one with blond hair, bucket hat, cane…

"You're that creep!" Tatsuki shot back, assuming a stance. "I don't know who you are, but I want nothing to do with-"

"Calm yourself, child." There was another voice, much deeper, much rougher. First, she couldn't identify it, but then she saw it- a cat, sitting on a trash can. Talking to her. "Kisuke won't hurt you, even though he looks and sounds shadier than a whole clan of yakuza."

"I'm hurt, Yoruichi-san," Kisuke said, his tone mockingly imitating wounded pride. "I am but a handsome store owner looking out for the safety of a young girl."

"What- what with the what- what the hell?!" Tatsuki said. The world had truly gone insane- cats were talking now. Cats.

"Please, Arisawa-san," Kisuke said, sounding more serious, "I've come to make you an offer."

"I don't want-"

"You remember it, don't you? You remember that night, when you first saw a hollow, and now you know your friends are lying to you."

"What are you, a stalker?" Tatsuki snapped. He was right, and she didn't like it.

"I prefer the term 'well informed'." He walked a little closer.

"Don't you try anything- I'll make you sorry you were ever born!"

"Yes, I know," Kisuke said, bemusedly, "second best in your age group in the girl's nationals in karate; would probably have won if not for a sprained wrist."

"Stalker."

"That much was in the newspapers, Arisawa-san." Kisuke said, stopping just a few feet from her.

It was true; she had been mentioned in the paper- her parents had been so proud. "I should…"

"I know that you are strong. As strong as you could be for your age, probably. But you're facing monsters whose power makes your own insignificant, and now you're part of a world where you're helpless and weak. You see these monsters all the time, and your friend doesn't always make it. Sometimes- a lot of the time, even- he fails to get there in time. You see it, and you can do nothing about it."

"Who the hell do you think you are?"

"The man who would offer you a chance to even the score." Kisuke said, his voice flat.

"What are you talking about?"

"Power, Arisawa-san. Your friend, Kurosaki-san has it in abundance- but he is not unique. If you had the chance to stop being powerless, if you had the chance to help instead of haplessly stand by and watch as souls get murdered, devoured, would you take it- or let it slip?"

"What, make me one of those weird people like Ichigo, with swords and all?"

"Exactly. The word is 'shinigami', Arisawa-san, and few- almost none, statistically- have the ability to become one prior to death. Fortunately, I am nothing short of brilliant- and you have all the potential I need."

"…go to hell." Tatsuki said. "I'm not an idiot- you want something from me, and _I don't trust you_."

"Smart girl." The cat noted.

"Smart indeed- sensible and strong both. In that regard, she is an even better candidate than Kurosaki-san." Kisuke said, smiling.

"Go fuck yourself." Tatsuki said coldly.

"You want to be there for her, don't you?" Tatsuki winced. "For that girl- the one person that's more precious to you than anything else. That night, you were powerless to help the one person you've always been there for. That's what's eating you up."

"You really are too blunt, Kisuke." The cat grunted.

"Sometimes, blunt is all that's needed," he said dismissively. "I leave it up to you- will you remain weak, or will you grow the power to protect the girl you love- no, everyone important to you?"

"I- I-" Tatsuki stuttered, unsure what to say. That guy had struck a nerve: The knowledge that these masked monsters could attack Orihime, Tatsuki's parents, or anybody that she cared for at any moment was awful to bear. The offer of receiving the power to protect them was tempting. But then again, this man was a total stranger to her, and not exactly one of the kind that inspire direct trust. Just taking his offer without any thought would be naïve thing to do.

"It is your choice alone, Arisawa-san." Urahara assured her once more.

"I- I need more time to think about this!" Tatsuki finally shouted.

"Very well then; time you shall be given." He said, as he pulled a small notebook out of one of his pockets. He opened it, scribbled down something on the corner of a page, and tore it out, handing the snipet to Tatsuki. "This is my phone number. When you decide to to take up my offer, call me whenever you feel like it. If you however chose to refuse, you may burn it, tear it, flush it down the toilet, or express your anger towards me and my pretentious offer in a more creative way. Whatever your response will be, I am looking forward to it, Arisawa-san!"

The man then turned around on the spot, and marched away into another street, out of Tatsuki's sight. Once he was gone, the cat, which was still sitting on the trash can stood up, stretched, and jumped down, to sit down in front of Tatsuki.

"Please don't judge him. He really is a bright mind, and a good person; it's just that his social skills are barely – if at all – existant, and that he has the tendency to be a bit quirky. You're right in assuming that he has his reasons for all this, but he really seeks no harm in making you this offer. You'll only end up like your friend, Ichigo." The cat – Yoruichi? – said.

"What, you mean a grumpy ghost samurai with a magical girlfriend?" It burst out of Tatsuki.

While she was no expert at the anatomy of felines, and therefore did know little about the facial expressions of a cat, she could still somehow tell that this particular cat was grinning. "Well, something along those lines. But regardless... I suppose I'll see you when you accept his offer – if you do accept, that is."

The cat then turned around, and went off into the same direction that Urahara went into.

For just a moment, Tatsuki stayed where she was, and stared down at the snipet that Urahara had given her lying on her palm. She then closed her hand around it, turned around, and ran. She wasn't even sure where she should be going now; all that she knew was that she had to get away from this place. Out of the open.

Somewhere were she could think in peace.

Inevitably, almost without thinking about it, her feet took her to Orihime's apartment. Where else? The apartment was nothing special; a small little place that was spacious enough for two people- but it was also Orihime's home, a place where she had had many fond memories.

That creep had been right at one point- Orihime easily meant more to her than any of her other friends. She had friends in the karate club, friends in school, some even close to her, important- but nobody was like Orihime. None of them had made the kind of bond they had, ever since they were small. None of them were as close to her as her very best friend in this world. Sometimes Tatsuki hated it, but if it she had to save either two of her other friends or Orihime, she would choose Orihime without a second thought.

Shaking her head, she entered the apartment. She didn't even have to knock- she was at home here.

"Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime cheered, seeing her come in, "I made cupcakes- you should try them! I added lemon and béarnaise." She smiled innocently, and Tatsuki smiled back.

"All right," Tatsuki said, "just the one, I guess."

The taste combination wasn't as awful as she had imagined, and the cupcake went down without much trouble, assisted by some sweet tea. As Orihime went into yet another one of her kooky ramblings- Tatsuki was sure she was the only one who actually found them charming- she sat back against the wall, resting on the floor, simply thinking. All the insanity of her life seemed so much easier to handle here- being this at ease, she could think clearly.

Who the hell was Ichigo now? Well, she had a chance to find out… but did she want to? She didn't know what becoming a shinigami entailed, if there was price to pay…  
But the idea of power, not for herself but for Orihime, was appealing.

_Well, come now,_ her inner critic said, _you're not wanting power selflessly. You want to protect her, but you also hate being weak. You want to feel strong again._.

Well, true- she wasn't really that noble, no. But if the results were the same, then…

No. This was crazy. This idea was insane- she couldn't do it.

_But the world is insane, and it's leaving you behind with no way out. You might as well go insane with it- at least you'd be mad with style._

What the hell kind of logic was that?

But there was a point to it, though. That guy was a creep- but she didn't want to be left behind either. She hated the idea of being a victim. She had always been able to stand up for herself, from little bullies in the playground up to high school up to now, no boy had ever shoved her around without receiving a lot of pain for his troubles…

_But then again, some things will always be beyond you. You'll never be able to stop a speeding bullet- face a gun, and all those martial arts mean nothing. You'll never be Bruce Lee- no matter how much you train, there will always be something so far beyond you that you can't possibly compare. The only difference is that you realized that you're weak in comparison to something much stronger._

But if she had a chance to grasp at power, shouldn't she take it?

"Hey, Orihime?" Tatsuki said, cutting her off mid rant.

"And then the laser-firing snowman would say- yes, Tatsuki-chan?" Orihime chirped.

"If… if I found out…" God, how did she put this? "You know how I've always stood up for you, right? That's how it worked since we were kids."

"Of course," Orihime cheered, "what about it?"

"What if… what if there was a bully or something, somebody so strong I couldn't possibly stand up to him?"

"A bully that Tatsuki-chan can't stand up to? But something like that doesn't exist!" Orihime said, still perfectly cheerful.

Tatsuki smiled weakly. "Let's just pretend that it did exist... and that there was a way to change that, but that way was not guaranteed to work, and... fairly suspicous at that."

Had Tatsuki asked any other person for advice on this, she never would have been this direct – with Orihime however, she could be certain that her friend's mind moved in planes that essentially guaranteed that she would suspect nothing.

"Hmm... I don't know, honestly. That way could be dangerous, it could be weird, it could fun, it could lead to you fighting kung-fu-wizard-ninjas, but... I think no matter what happens if you chose that way, I'm certain that Tatsuki-chan would be able to work it out somehow. I know that you always manage, Tatsuki-chan. You're unstoppably strong!"

"...Thanks." Tatsuki said, flattered. Hearing Orihime confess her confidence like that... it really did help her get a more level-headed view on the situation. It was true, this Urahara guy was a shady, shady creep. She didn't know what his intention was, and she didn't know what this all was about – but on the other hand, he was her only chance to not only get an explanation of what was going on, but also give her a chance to receive power... and even in the worst case, she could probably always back out of this after getting the information she wanted. "Really, thank you a lot... that helped me."

"Hmm... now I want to ask you something, Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime suddenly said, before Tatsuki could even continue her thoughts.

"Huh? What is it?"

"Weeeell... I was wondering if maybe, you have seen these weird people around lately, too! People with chains hanging around them, moving around all over town... and nobody seems to notice them! Even though they are always sooo friendly, everybody ignores them. Do you know that is with that?"

"…I don't know what you're talking about." Tatsuki said awkwardly, looking away.

"…oh." Orihime said, sounding disappointed.

"No!" Tatsuki snapped, something inside her revolting. Lie to Orihime? What the hell was wrong with her? "No, I do- I do see them. Everywhere, all the time. I just… I thought I was the only one seeing them. I'm sorry I lied, I…" There was no sense telling her about Ichigo yet- she didn't have that figured out enough yet.

"It's okay." Orihime smiled. "At least I know I'm not crazy. I mean, I'm usually a bit… out there, but I didn't use to see things that weren't there…"

"They are there." Tatsuki said reassuringly. "I thought I was insane too- I'm glad you told me. I didn't have the nerve."

Orihime put an arm around Tatsuki, smiling. "If we're mad as a hatter together, that's fine with me," she said, cheerful as ever.

Tatsuki sighed. "Sometimes I feel like the world's gone mad lately… like everything's been turned upside down."

"Well, ghosts are pretty freaky."

"…yeah. At least I have you."

"Always." Orihime said.

Just sitting there with Orihime, Tatsuki thought long and hard, about ghosts, about monsters, about creepy men, about protecting…  
Fuck it. She had made her mind up.

It was after school he found her- or rather, he was conspicuously buying a newspaper from the one news stand she always passed on her way home, and the place was conspicuously empty, too.

"What was that about a telephone number?" She grumbled.

"Oh, you meant to call me?" He said, smiling. "How fortunate our paths crossed, then- it saves us both having to set up a meeting." Shameless, Tatsuki thought. It couldn't be more obvious, but he still managed to look and behave like he was entirely innocent.

"If you wanted to spy on me…"

"If you wanted to spy on me…"

"If I wanted to spy on you, my dear Arisawa-san, you'd never have any idea." He said brightly. "So, have you made your mind up?"

"…yeah, I have." She said, after a long pause.  
"Ahh, excellent! So what is your decision, Arisawa-san?" Urahara questioned, almost comically overjoyed.

"Not so fast, bucket-hat! Before I give you my answer, I want you to give me some answers. Like, what are these white monsters? What's up with Ichigo being a ghost samurai? And what is Rukia? I think I deserve at least that much information, regardless of whether I accept this offer of yours or not!"

Urahara gave her a calculating, but amused look. "My, my, how demanding your are, Arisawa-san... but very well. If it is information you want, then it is information that you will get. You see..."

One explanation later, Tatsuki had been given a lot to think about. "So, let me get this straight." She said thoughtfully. "Kuchiki Rukia is basically a psychopomp ghost samurai, a shinigami, who has lost her powers by giving them to Ichigo, turning him into a substitute psychopomp ghost samurai."

"Eeyup." Urahara confirmed.

"And now those two are together fighting white mask monsters, these hollows."

"Affirmative."

"And said monsters are corrupted human spirits."

"Yesz!"

"And by killing them, these spirits are purified, and go to heaven, this Soul Society place."

"Sure."

"And you are offering me to become a shinigami as well."

"Yes, that about sums up everything that I explained to you, Arisawa-san." The shopkeeper nodded. "So since that is out of the way, I do quite hope that we can get to your decision in regards to my offer now?"

Tatsuki hesitated. While the explanation that Urahara had given her did make sense, it also raised her doubts towards him: Just what was his role in all this, and what were his own reasons for making this offer? The man remained as shady as he was before. But then again, all of these doubts were things that she was already thinking about before... and rejecting the offer would hardly help her find out anything else.

"... I accept the offer." Tatsuki finally said. "But don't you dare try anything funny now! If something happens to me, my parents will find out about this, and they will make you pay for it!"

"That could be worked around." Urahara said, seemingly moreso thinking aloud than talking to Tatsuki. "But, regardless. I am glad to hear that you accept to this. I should however note that the process of turning you into a shinigami will not be without danger. There would be plenty of pain involved. Do you still agree?"

"Yes." Tatsuki said solemnly.

"Good." Urahara grinned.

"Just one thing… what do you get out of this?"

Urahara took off his hat. Without it obscuring his face, he looked a little less like a creep, and a little more like a somewhat worn, handsome man in his late twenties. "I might as well be honest." He twirled his cane. "You'd be a test subject." Seeing the look on her face, he hastened to add, "Don't worry- I perfected it on animals, on hollows before; you wouldn't even be the first human test subject. I am confident that I have if not perfected it, then at least made it more than stable."

"You get a lab rat, I get power. Fair enough."

"The process involves pain. It isn't even guaranteed you won't die, or that it will even succeed- given your data, and the level of completion my process is at, chance of success is about seventy-eight percent. A good number, but you could burn out, or at worst even… expire."

"Okay." She said simply.

He blinked. "You seem pretty accepting. Well, I might as well continue being honest- there will be times when it will hurt. And even after the process, you will be going through an intense training regimen, more than anything you've ever done before. And even then, there's no guarantee you'll successfully develop a zanpakutou."

"I said I made my mind up!" Tatsuki snapped.

"…good."

"There's a price you pay though, isn't there?"

"Clever girl." He nodded. "Once you become a shinigami, you are not truly human any more. Your body becomes a dummy- it's still the same body, but the you who is inside it… you will age at a rate between three hundred and sixty-eight percent to three thousand and four percent slower. You will have forever stepped into a world where your one duty is to kill monsters. It's the end of the world as you know it."

"And I feel fine about that." Tatsuki said.

"If only because you do not grasp the full extent of it. Still, that qualifies as informed consent."

"…do I still get to have a normal life?" There was the first hint of fear, showing through her mask of determination.

"Oh, yes. You can live out a full human life any way you want- get married, adopt some children, grow old together with the love of your life… but when you die, all that changes is that you'll need a new gigai. You'll still look more or less as you do now. I suppose being forever young is a perk- then again, who wants to live forever?"

"Just shut up and take me wherever we need to go," Tatsuki grumbled.

"Then to the Urahara cave we go!" Urahara cheerfully declared, before adding more silently "...That is to say, my basement."

He then marched of in an overly pompous manner, making it hard to believe that this quirky shopkeeper was the same as the calculating scientist that had just revealed himself to Tatsuki. After staring at him inredulously for a moment, Tatsuki sighed, before going after him, wondering just what the hell she had gotten herself into.


	7. Quincies have reasons for hating you

**Author's Notes:**  
Aaand back to the longer chapters. Quite interesting that it's always the odd-numbered chapters that end up being on the longer side... but oh well, that won't keep up for long.

* * *

"Are you sure that it's supposed to be here? Because I sure am not seeing any hollow around here." Ichigo said, as he turned towards Rukia.

"I don't understand this... it should be here! The denreishinki would never give me inaccurate information for a mission!" Rukia replied, her disbelief towards the current situation clearly audible in her tone.

It was a day just like any other day for Ichigo had been after he became a substitute shinigami. Kendo training, attempts at learning how to contain reiatsu, school, everything had been completely normal... until they had received the mission they were currently on during a break. Technically, there was nothing suspicious about the mission: Just an ordinary hollow, with no special powers or anything.

The only thing that was different was the fact that the hollow simply wasn't there.

And it wasn't just this hollow, either: Over the past few days, Rukia had received multiple missions where the hollow that they were supposed to go after just wasn't there. At first, Rukia had insisted that it was just a mistake, with the system, and that nothing is perfect. As the number of weird missions kept increasing however, both Ichigo and Rukia became increasingly doubtful towards that explanation.

"Are you sure that this thing isn't broken or anything?" Ichigo asked uncertainly. To say that Rukia was worked up over the entire situation would have been an understatement.

"I'm absolutely certain! If the denreishinki was broken, it would simply stop working, and not give me messed-up mission details. Either this mission was incorrect to begin with, or..."

"Or something already took care of the hollows?" Ichigo suggested.

Rukia hesitated. "That's possible... but not too likely. If they can't get anything else, hollows do attack and eat each other, but if this were the case, we wouldn't be notified to begin with. And besides shinigami, there's almost nothing that can outright kill hollows."

Ichigo raised his eyebrow. "'Almost'?"

"Well... there is- ah, forget it. It doesn't matter."

"What now?"

"Nothing." Rukia grunted. "I just thought of something, and realized it was impossible. Come on, let's get back to school."

"…sure." Ichigo grunted. They'd be late again, he just knew it.

* * *

oOo

* * *

In another part of town, Tatsuki- who had called in sick for this particular day- sat in Urahara's absurdly spacious basement, complete with an artificial sky, rocky grounds and a hot spring. She was out of her body, dressed in simple robes. Her body was occupied by what Urahara had explained was a modded soul, an artificial entity designed especially for looking after gigai- or human bodies.  
This was the day, the day when it was all or nothing, when she would get her powers or crash and burn. She thought back to one week ago, when it had first started.

"_So where do we begin?" She asked. "Lifting weights? Martial arts?"_

_Urahara laughed. "Nothing so crude. Today, we do only one thing." He held up his cane, and slammed it into her forehead- and to Tatsuki's surprise, there was no pain._

_To her further surprise, she was also standing next to her body, now lying limp on the ground. She took a deep breath, and fought the urge to freak out. She looked down to her chest- there was a chain coming from it, long and thin, leading to her body. "That's the link connecting the body to the soul," Urahara explained. "To have it severed means to die- unless one becomes a shinigami."_

_"Is that what we're doing today?" She tugged lightly at the chain; it was stuck firmly in her chest._

_"Not at all. Today is quite undramatic, actually. Take a seat, please." He gestured to a chair nearby. "Don't worry about the chain- it can stretch quite a bit."_

_Looking at him suspiciously, Tatsuki took a seat. Urahara took out a syringe, filled with a transparent liquid with a slightly yellowish tint._  
_"What's that?"_

_Urahara flicked the tip, letting a drop of the liquid leak out. "This, Arisawa-san, is a drug. It is designed to rapidly cultivate and grow the spiritual power of any being it is applied to."_

_"You're going to use… performance enhancing stuff on me, or what?"_

_Urahara smiled. "We could do it the slow way- that involves letting your reiatsu grow at a natural rate. Perhaps in twenty years, you'd have enough for the process to work."_

_"…it isn't dangerous, is it?"_

_"Mostly not. This solution is actually nine parts water- a pure dosage would definitely kill you. This should be the right amount to make your reiatsu grow explosively."_

_She held up her arm. "Just do it."_

_Still smiling, Urahara inserted the syringe, slowly pumping the contents of the phial into her blood- or was it blood when you were a soul? She wasn't sure. She waited until it was all in._

_"I don't feel any different."_

_"That's because it takes a week to take effect."_

_"A WEEK?"_

_"When I said explosive growth rate, I didn't mean the kind that gets to you overnight. Your spiritual cells are now working in overdrive- but it will still take its time. Science does not achieve miracles, and it needs its time."_

_"…fine." She grunted._

_"Excellent. Come back here in a week."_

…and here she was, being inspected by Urahara, who was checking Tatsuki's soul in order to see if the drug had worked the way it was supposed to.

After letting the shopkeeper silently go about his business (which involved doing plenty of things that one would normally expect to be done in a medical examination, such as checking her pulse, which he was currently doing) for some time, Tatsuki grew impatient. "Did that drug thing work now, or what?"

Urahara looked up, and gave her a devious grin. "Patience is a virtue, Arisawa-san. Finding this out takes its time... but yes, from how things currently seem, I would say that it was a complete success."

"So, can we get to the actual training after this?"

"Not yet, I'm afraid. Once this is done, I will inject you with a second drug, which will bring your reiatsu to its maximum potential, and then we will get to the actual training. If you would like, though, I could teach you some kendo once I injected you with the second drug... that would make things easier once we start the actual training. So what do you say?"

"Fine, if you say so..." Tatsuki sighed. No, this definitely was not what she had been expecting.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Contrary to Ichigo's belief, he and Rukia did make it back to school in time, after all: Only half of their break had passed in the time where they had been on the mission. The mysterious hollow disappearances were good for something, after all.

Trying his best to ignore Keigo's teasing, who once again was convinced that Ichigo and Rukia had been using most of the break to do certain other things, Ichigo tried to get his meal down before they had to go back to class. Him, Rukia, Keigo and Mizuiro were outside on the school grounds, making use of the good weather they had by relaxing under a tree. Rukia and Mizuiro were having a conversation about class, leaving Ichigo to deal with Keigo's teasing by himself.

"...You know, Ichigo, this would be way more enjoyable if you wouldn't be constantly ignoring me." Keigo complained, having just finished singing his own rendition of 'I will always love you' in mockery, which had only been made more horrible by the fact that Keigo's English was absolutely miserable.

"Tough luck." Ichigo grunted, his mouth full of food. "You've been singing love songs around me for weeks now, it should be a no-brainer to figure out that I'm used to it by now."

"Used to it, you say?" Keigo asked mischievously. "If that is the case, then I suppose an entirely different approach to this is in order. How about I-"

"Please excuse me." A calm voice interrupted Keigo, before he could even suggest his new approach to teasing Ichigo. "You are Kurosaki Ichigo, are you not?"

Ichigo looked up. Standing in front of him was another student: A pale, bespectacled young man about Ichigo's age, with black, chin-long hair, and blue eyes.

"Who's askin'?" Ichigo said, not too pleased with having his lunch break interrupted. "Wait, I know you- you're in my class. Ishini or something, right?"

"Ishida Uryu." The lean teenager introduced himself, adjusting his glasses. "Let's talk, Kurosaki-san."

"'Bout what`?" Ichigo said. He was being rude and he knew it, but he wasn't in that great a mood to begin with, and with Keigo's asinine teasings on top of an interrupted lunch break, he wasn't feeling courteous.

"…let's go talk by ourselves. I have something which I need to discuss with you." Very formal, Ichigo noted. Prim and proper- probably the kind of nerdy young man that aced all the test scores.

"Oooh, it looks like Ichigo has a rival in love!" Keigo snorted. "I can see it now, a challenge to a duel for a woman's heart-"

"I swear to GOD, Keigo, another word and I will break your index finger." Ichigo growled.

"…or is it that Rukia-chan has a rival in love?" Keigo continued gleefully. His hand shooting out like a snake- a snake that had woken up on the wrong side of bed only to find out there was no coffee left- Ichigo grabbed Keigo by the finger, and began twisting.

"AOWWW ah aha ah ah AAAAH…" Keigo squealed. "I swear Ichigo I was just kidding- OWW!"

"Get lost." Ichigo said, letting go.

"Curse you, Ichigo! I shall get you back! Somehow..." Keigo complained, as Ichigo and Ishida walked a few steps away from his friends.

"You wanted to talk? So talk." Ichigo said.

"Very well." He said, once more adjusting his glasses. Ichigo was beginning to suspect it was a tic. "I suppose I can only be frank- I know what you have been up to these last few months."

"…god, if this really IS about Rukia, I will kick your ass." Ichigo grumbled. "No, we're not dating, for the last time-"

"I know you're not." Ishida said frankly. "No, I know what the two of you have really been doing."

"Uh huh." Ichigo said. There was no way he'd know about hollows, right? This thin, lean, glasses-wearing nerd who looked like he'd topple at a mild breeze- right? "That being?"

"You've been hunting hollows."

Damn.

"And you've been doing a poor job of it, too. You've left two alive for every single one you purged- you think you are protecting people? You are barely managing the problem."

"Look, I don't know what this is-"

"You purify them. I purge them, and I do it better than you do. This is me telling you to stop getting in the way. I am the destroyer, and I do not need some second-rate human playing shinigami upsetting the balance."

Ichigo blinked. The guy had said 'I am the destroyer' unironically, and moreover, he seemed to know a lot about hollows.

"You're the one that's been wasting my time all week long?"

"If by 'wasting your time', you mean killing the hollows that you were too slow to purify before they attack any souls, then yes, that would be me." He gave Ichigo a dark glare. That guy really wasn't joking around here...

Rukia also seemed to have noticed that Uryu meant business, as she left Mizuiro with Keigo, and walked over to them. "Hey, what's this all about?" She asked, as she got close to them.

"Halte dich hier raus, _shinigami_!" Uryu hissed at Rukia in a language that Ichigo couldn't recognize, spitting out the last word. Rukia stopped dead and her tracks, and stared at the young man, her eyes growing wide, while Uryu focussed his attention on Ichigo again.

"Consider this a warning, Kurosaki Ichigo: Do not get in my way in dealing with hollows." He said darkly.

"...And what if I do?" Ichigo asked with a mix of both defiance and curiosity.

"In that case, I cannot guarantee that you will get out of this unharmed. Am I understood?"

Ichigo hesitated, but ultimately nodded slowly. This guy knew about hollows, and didn't exactly leave the impression that he was joking about anything he said – it would be better to give him what he wanted for now. Ichigo still could break his word later on... for now, the most important thing was to get rid of him.

Judging by his facial expression, Uryu did not believe him, but he did not say anything about it.

"Good." He said, as he turned around, leaving both Ichigo and Rukia standing where they were. The two of them stared after him, feeling very much taken aback.

"Just what was that all about?" Ichigo asked, scratching his head. "Just what is this guy? And what he did he even say to you, Rukia? Did you understand that?"

Rukia however did not seem to have heard Ichigo: She was still staring after Uryu, disbelief written in her face.

"Impossible..." She muttered. Ichigo, not taking kindly to being flat-out ignored by her, waved his hand in front of her face.

"Hellooo? Earth to Rukia, anyone home, or are you suffering from a case of love at first sight?" Ichigo asked, taking a page out of Keigo's book in order to get Rukia's attention.

Apparently not in the least bothered by Ichigo's attempts to mess with her, Rukia turned towards Ichigo again. Shock was written all over her face. Whatever that guy had told her, it really must've struck a nerve... come to think of it, it was the first time he ever saw her like this.

"This guy-" She asked, only to be interrupted by Mizuiro, who reminded them that break was over now.

Ichigo shook his head. "Let's save this for later."

* * *

oOo

* * *

'Later' came, ending up being after school altogether, when the two of them were walking back from school. As soon as they had parted with their friends, turning round a street corner, Ichigo turned to Rukia.

"So do you have any idea who that jackass was?"

"I…" Rukia said, sounding unsure. "It just…"

"He knows about what we do, and he says he's doing a better job of it too. I really kind of wanted to just suckerpunch him then and there- who the hell is he?"

"…Quincy." Rukia said quietly. "Only it's not possible- not supposed to."

"What the hell's a Quincy?"

"Quincies were humans with significant spiritual power, and their own set of skills," Rukia began explaining, sounding solemn, "they used mainly bows as their weapon- activated as a spiritual weapon by some personal artifact. They had a big bag of other tricks too, though- damn, it's been too long since my history class…"

"What was that about it being impossible?"

"You know how we purify hollows by cracking their masks, sending their souls to the afterlife?"

"Uh huh?"

"Quincies flat out destroyed hollows. And when you do that, the spiritual power goes to waste- the world of the living becomes oversaturated, while the soul society starts to lack in power. It creates an unbalance of power between the realms."

"What does that mean, eh?"

"Reality begins to crumble. Eventually, both the world of the living would collapse along with the soul society, and earth would go back to being just a rock populated by soulless animals."

"…and that didn't happen."

"No." Rukia shook her head. "If I remember correctly, we first learned of their existence seven hundred years ago. Back then, they were only a couple dozen. What they did with regards to destruction of soul matter represented so small a toll on overall reiatsu that it was nothing the system couldn't repair by itself. Then they became a couple hundred, and matters were still progressing fine. Then, a couple of centuries ago, they united under a leader in the thousands…"

"This story won't end happily, I just know it."

"There was a war. The quincies were slaughtered- they faced the full might of the Gotei Juusantai, and they were killed almost to a man. After their defeat, they were hunted for generations, until it was generally accepted that all of them had died. By now, the general perception is that there might still be some groups of survivors out there, but that they are far too weak and low in number to really cause any damage."

"In that case, I see why Ishida's got a problem with shinigami." Ichigo remarked dryly. "Do we know for certain that he's a quincy, though?"

"I thought he might just be an empowered human- but what he said back there, 'Halte dich hier raus'- that's German for "Stay out of this". That's the language most used by the quincies, the language used for all of their ceremonies, techniques and weapons. Did he say anything else to you that might imply that he's a quincy?"

"Hmm... well, he did call himself a destroyer, and said that something about him purging hollows, while I purify them... I suppose that fits the bill, huh?"

"It really does... damn, I better report this once I'm able to get back to Soul Society..."

"Well, whatever. I don't have any intention of quitting, just because this guy asked me to. If we get across him on our hunts, I guess I'll have to show him why the shinigami won this war, and shut his overly proud mouth." Ichigo boasted, making a fist.

Rukia grimaced. "You better don't. If this guy really is a Quincy, then you shouldn't provoke a fight with him. Like I said, Quincies mostly rely on ranged attacks in combat, using spirit weapons like bows. You're currently hardly better than an amateur swordsman, and your experience in dealing with ranged attacks is limited at best... not to mention that this guy probably already has years of experience. If you were to fight him, he would exploit your weaknesses, just like Grand Fisher did, and this time, I doubt that we could hope for Urahara to save you. No, fighting him is out of the question."

"Then what am I supposed to do if we ever directly come across him during a mission? Settle our differences with a friendly talk over a cup of tea? Play a card game, or toss a coin to decide who gets to kill the hollow?" Ichigo asked, giving Rukia a glare.

"Hmm... honestly speaking, I have no idea." Rukia admitted. "Just try to not give Ishida any reason to attack you if we come across him during a mission. Hopefully, that won't happen until we find out a way to deal with this..."

Ichigo grunted. "Not giving him any reason to attack me, you say... easier said than done. This guy's attitude just pisses me off. Going around, proclaiming that he's being a better protector than me... if he's really doing such a good job with this all, then where was he when that hollow attacked my family when I first met you? Where was he when that stuff with Orihime's brother happened? Where was he when I was fighting Grand Fisher? He simply wasn't there, and yet he calls me out for missing so many hollows. Some protector he is!"

"Or maybe you were just faster than him in regards to these particular hollows." Rukia suggested.

"That'd make him even more of an asshole, if he boasts that he's faster than me at dealing with these things..."

"Well, asshole or not: You should not fight him. You would only lose, Ichigo, and depending on how deep his grudge goes, he might even kill you after he has defeated you."

Ichigo sighed. "Yeah, yeah, got it... I'll try to evade Ishida, not provoke him if we do get across him, and don't even think about fighting him." Already before Ichigo even finished his sentence, he and Rukia got the feeling that despite of Ichigo's promise, things would not be that easy.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Elsewhere, Tatsuki was sitting down in the same chair she had last time, out of body once more.

"So... are we ready?" She said eagerly. "I feel great- I started to feel the power the same day you injected me; I feel... great. I can feel this power moving inside me, moving, stirring... it's like I just woke up from being asleep all my life!"

Urahara chuckled. "Not unexpected. Not quite so dramatic in reality, but to realize ones power is thrilling. Yours came about at an accelerated rate- it's natural that you feel spirited." He prepared a syringe, this time full of a colourless liquid. "The first injection made your reiatsu grow to its fullest potential at its current level- this second injection will rein in that power, refine it, make it accessible to you."

"It's not accessible now?"

"Oh, not at all." Urahara said. "Right now you're a human with a lot of power, but no way of using it- you're like a power plant with no way of spending that power on, for example, a nearby city. This would, speaking in terms of analogy, give you wires, cable and connection."

"I thought-"

"That reiatsu is something you can just grab and use? Tell me, could you willingly command your stomach to slow or accelerate digestion? Make your heart beat slower or faster at will? Release adrenalin when you needed it? Humans have remarkably little control of their own bodies; it's amazing how much of it runs on autopilot. That will be the core difference between a shinigami and a human being- the potential to control oneself down to a spiritual atom."

"...holy crap." Tatsuki said, blinking. "Do it."

Still smiling, Urahara swabbed her arm, and slowly inserted the syringe into one of her veins, injecting the second part of the drug. When he was done, he gently pulled it out, and discarded it.

"I uh, I don't feel any different." Tatsuki said, confused.

"Really?"

"Yeah, this is- UWAAGH!" Tatsuki's back arced, her body falling to the floor, spasming, wracked with tremors. "I ah OH GOD AAAAH WHAT AH-"

"What you feel is your power, reorganizing itself. It should take only a few minutes. Does it hurt?"

"Not bad- AACK!- no no no, not bad, but it feels- I can't describe it OH GOD-" Tatsuki lay on the ground, cramping as the spiritual energy of her body morphed, grew and shrunk, over and over.

"I believe I should mention that this is the part that I was referring to when I said that you might die during all this. Your reiatsu is currently being brought to its current maximum potential... and it might as well be that a living human being's soul will not be able to sustain that kind of spiritual strength. Not to mention that there is no telling how your body will react once you re-enter it."

"Kehehe...! If this pain is... as bad as it... gets, then... this all succeeding is pretty much... guaranteed!" Tatsuki managed to get out over the absurd, indescribable sensations running through her body, a mad grin on her face.

Urahara smiled mischievously. "And that is exactly why I have chosen you."

* * *

oOo

* * *

By the time that Ishida Uryu got home, the house was completely empty – but then again, how else should it be? Uryu's grandfather Soken had died already several years ago, killed by the hollows that he, like Uryu was fighting against. Uryu never got to know his own mother, his father never having made the slightest mention of her, so that Uryu didn't even know whether she was alive or dead. The only bit of family that Uryu had left was his father... Ishida Ryuken.

That at a time like this, the man wasn't at home was hardly a surprise. If Uryu's father cared about anything, then it would be his work. Even though like Uryu, Ryuken had been taught the way of the Quincy by his own father Soken, Ryuken had for whatever reason discarded his status as Quincy already before Uryu's birth. When Uryu had confronted his father about the matter, he had simply dismissed the entire quincy business as pointless, saying something along the lines of "the living shouldn't be wasting their time with the dead". But even though Ryuken knew about Uryu embracing and frequently using his powers and disapproved of it, he never outright forbade it... this, however, was only another reason for the distant relationship between Uryu and his father.

As far as Uryu himself was concerned, hunting hollows was essentially an obligation for him.

In the quiet of his lonely home, he began heating some noodles, still thinking about his day at school, about that fake shinigami. He had really put on a tough act- truth be told, he himself was just a kid with powers too, and it was something he had to remind himself of all the time. He was good, he had practiced since he was six, but he was still young and dumb- or rather, capable as much as any teenaged boy to do rather stupid things, like confronting a shinigami whose reiatsu was already surprisingly close to his own, who hadn't really done anything to provoke him.

But then again, had he been wrong? He did a run of Karakura for two hours every evening, speeding from building to building to strike down any hollow he could feel, and he always got at least five of them even on a slow day. He had always known that Kurosaki had an unusual amount of reiatsu for a normal human being, and for well over a month now, he also felt Kurosaki rushing out at odd times to kill one hollow at a time. Whatever sensory equipment he had- there was no way he was refined enough to sense reiatsu intuitively- was both slower and weaker than his own perception of the spiritual world. He was a grunt, relying on nothing but raw strength and a tendency to charge headlong into a fight, thinking as he went. It was baffling that he survived, let alone succeeded- he had to admit, however grudgingly, that he was not unskilled. For an amateur, that is.

So why did he feel infuriated about Kurosaki? Why did he irritate him with his very presence? The logical part of his brain told him that he was being childish, that he should just do as he had always done- but in young men, the logical part of the brain is, regrettably, often in minority. How could he walk around so smugly in his shinigami robes, borrowed from a real shinigami too weak to do her own job, not knowing the cruelty and horror it represented?

Something had to be done. Something- if only to make Kurosaki understand who was number one.

* * *

oOo

* * *

At the same time, in another part of the town, Ichigo had to sneeze – which wasn't exactly the best moment to do so, since him, his family and Rukia were having lunch together.

"Bless you, Ichi-nii!" Yuzu said, as cheerful as ever.

"Couldn't you at least have turned your head around, nii-chan? This isn't exactly appetizing, you know." Karin added dryly.

"Beat it. It's not like I have any choice on where or when I sneeze." Ichigo grunted.

"You should still at least apologize when you just do it like that, Ichigo. It is just good manners." His mother chided.

Ichigo grimaced. "Oh, right, everyone gang up on me... let me guess, you have something to say as well, Rukia?"

"Uh... isn't there a saying that if you sneeze, somebody is thinking about you?"

"That's only a saying... still, better than you criticizing me as well."

"Could we please drop the subject now?" Masaki asked. "I prefer not talking about this sort of thing while we eat."

"Yes, mom." Ichigo said, turning his attention to his food again. As he silently continued to eat, he got thinking.

Ever since Yuzu's condition had improved far enough for her to return from the hospital, Ichigo's general mood had been generally increasing (not that he showed it, that is)... until the incident with Grand Fisher happened and hat and clogs revealed himself to be a cold, manipulative bastard. And then there was this business with Ishida today... come to think of it, though, if Ishida had come to Ichigo's help when he had lost against Grand Fisher, Ichigo probably wouldn't have minded it as much as he minded Urahara. Despite being the asshole that he seemed to be, Ishida at least seemed to agree with Ichigo on the principle that hollows needed to be fought before they could cause damage, unlike that other bastard. So why was Ishida so adamant about Ichigo not interfering with him? If anything, he should welcome the help in dealing with these monsters... sure, there was the not-so-ignorable part about the Quincies being driving to near extinction at the hand of the shinigami, but from what Ichigo knew about Ishida as classmate (which admittedly wasn't much), he didn't seem to be the kind of guy who would be 'racist' against a substitute shinigami.

So just what was his fucking deal?

After lunch, both Ichigo and Rukia headed to Ichigo's room, like they usually did – after all, it was the best way to ensure that whenever a hollow attacked, that they would be able to get moving as quickly as possible... and it was just about the only way for Rukia to get her homework done. While she was admittedly anything but stupid, the subjects that Ichigo was dealing with were a tad too complex for her to just jump in and understand without any help from Ichigo.

Just as he was putting a foot on the stairs, he could hear Yuzu throw a coughing fit, and it didn't sound healthy. Quickly, he turned back to the kitchen, to see her red in the face from exertion. His mother was already there, medicine in hand.

"It will be fine, Ichigo," she assured him, gently rubbing Yuzu's back as the coughing started to die down.

"You sure?"

"It will be. Now go up and study like a good boy."

"...yes, mom."

He grunted inwardly, and headed up with Rukia.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The next day, just after school, it was time again. Rukia's alarm went off, and off they ran to chase yet another hollow. At least this one hadn't popped up during school hours; for this, Ichigo felt grateful.

Out of his body and with sword in hand, he charged into an abandoned building, half ruined, along with Rukia. This time, they were there first- the hollow was sitting high up on the roof, glaring down on them through the ruined stories of the building. It licked its teeth, fresh blood lining it- some soul had been taken already.  
Giggling malevolently, the hollow- which had a lean shape not unlike a ferret or a squirrel, if ferrets were fifteen foot long- quickly climbed down, and leapt at Ichigo. Ichigo took a stance- but the hollow never hit.

In a flash of bright light, the hollow was pinned to the floor, a radiant projectile of pure energy sticking through its side and left hind leg. The hollow screeched, writhing in pain, but Ichigo couldn't care less. Instead, he looked to the roof.

And sure enough, there he was. Clothed in a strange, white suit, lined with blue, stoo Ishida Uryu, holding a glowing, ethereal bow in his hand. Gently, he adjusted his glasses. Something about his smug look made Ichigo plain angry.

"You!" He sneered. "What are you doing here?"

"Your job." Uryu replied coolly.

"My job? Like hell- if you were so much better than me, then why does this hollow have blood on its face? Who did you fail to save this time, _Quincy_?" Ichigo shot back.

"So you figured it out by now." Uryu stoically noted. "I suppose I have to at least give you credit for that. But to get back to your question – I might be a bit late to the scene, but even so, I was here before you, and managed to injure the hollow before you could even make an attack, _shinigami_. I know perfectly well that I cannot save every plus from hollows, but even so, I am doing a much better job at it than you could ever hope to. It is like I told you: I do not need an amateur substitute shinigami interfering in my business."

"What the hell is your deal?" Ichigo growled. "I know about what the shinigami did to the Quincy, but you can't be stupid enough to hold a grudge towards me because of what this Gotei did some centuries ago! Why can't you just accept me helping in dealing with hollows, asshole?"

While Ichigo and Uryu had been talking, the hollow had been able to recover enough for it to get back up again. Without making a single noise, the monster got up, and began charging at Ichigo, claws first – and he only noticed it after it was too late. In a quick last effort, Ichigo raised his sword a little, realizing that it was too late to dodge or fully block the attack...

But the hollow never reached Ichigo. Only a few inches before it even reached Ichigo, the beast was pierced by another arrow of bright blue light from behind, and disintegrated. Ichigo, still shocked, could only stare.

"Dead." Uryu calmly stated, his hands still at his bow. "Do you hear me, Kurosaki Ichigo? If it wasn't for my help, you would be dead now. This is why I do not want you interfering with my business. You may have the raw strength, but you almost completely lack any combat experience. In the time that it takes you to kill a single hollow, another one could be showing at another place in the town, and use the fact that you are still fighting to its advantage by going on a rampage, undisturbed by you, who should be dealing with it. You are inexperienced, inefficient, and slow. You are correct in assuming that I cannot deal with every hollow that shows up in this town, and that somebody helping out would make things easier. But an arrogant substitute shinigami such as you would be more of a hindrance than anything else!"

"AND YOU THINK THAT YOU ARE SO MUCH BETTER THAN ME AT THIS?!" Ichigo shouted, his rage getting the better of him. "If you are oh-so-great, then where you when that hollow attacked my family, and I was forced into becoming a substitute shinigami?! Where were you when Orihime's brother tried to kill her?! Where were you when me and my sisters where attacked on the graveyard?! You are barely better than me, so don't go around acting all high and mighty!"

"Since when were you under the impression that I was not aware of these occasions? When Kuchiki Rukia first arrived, I was under the impression that she, as a trained shinigami, would be able to defeat a single hollow. But she wasn't, and it was all due to your interference, Kurosaki Ichigo." Uryu explained, still as calm as ever, which only got Ichigo's blood even more boiling than it already was. "When Inoue Orihime was attacked, I was willing to give you a chance to prove your worth as protector. When the hollow residing on the graveyard attacked you and your sisters on the graveyard, the entire situation was resolved before I could even head there. I am just human, after all – and that occasion just further proved that you are not fit to be a protector." He readjusted his glasses once more. "You honestly should have noticed by now yourself that you are not suited for this. Shouldn't it be telling that you only just recently realized that somebody besides you was fighting hollows?"

At this point, he jumped down from the roof, and landed just a few feet away from Ichigo. "You are simply not suited for this, _shinigami_." He slowly said, especially stressing the last word.

"You god damn bastard..." Ichigo snarled. "Why don't you come over here and fight me?! I'll show you who's not worthy of being a protector!"

Even though Ichigo regretted the words the instant they came out of his mouth, they seemed to have achieved at least something: Uryu's calm, stoic facade was finally broken, and his expression changed to one of outright surprise.

"A duel?" He asked, baffled.

Ichigo hesitated. Rukia had outright warned him to not challenge Uryu, but from the looks of it, the sheer idea of a duel seemed to surprise, almost even scare Uryu... oh, to the hell with it. Even if it wasn't the best idea, it was a good enough chance to wipe that smug attitude out of that asshole's face.

"Yeah, a duel! What, are you scared of fighting a shinigami? Scared that you can't live up to all your big talk? What's wrong, _Quincy_?"

Uryu remained silent for a moment. Ichigo was already beginning to think – no, rather hope that he would decline, but then- "Very well. You shall have your duel. Tomorrow, on the Karakura graveyard – that place should be empty enough for us to face each other without getting disturbed. Yes... you can prove me your worth as protector, substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo."

Well, crap. So much for following Rukia's advice.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**  
Dun-dun-duuun. I suppose that makes the first time that a plotline isn't directly resolved in a single chapter, hm? I daresay that from now on, the final product of metabolism (aka shit) is going down.  
But there's something else that's new... omakes. Just read on a bit, and you'll have a good idea of what that is going to be like.

* * *

**TOTALLY UN-CANON CRACK OMAKE TIME! **

On edge, Ichigo approached the graveyard, Rukia in tow. Today, they would settle things good and all, to see who was the worthier. The road in felt heavy, but at the same time, Ichigo tingled with excitement.

Before long, they came upon Ishida, standing there in his white suit, looking as cool and condescending as ever.

"Today, Kurosaki, I shall show you once and for all what your place is." He exclaimed.

"I shall teach you not to underestimate the Kurosaki name!" Ichigo sneered. The two of them stared intensely into one another's eyes, in a totally-not-gay way. The stare intensified, and as the wind blew by them quietly, making their clothes flap dramaqtically in the wind, a tumbleweed passed by. It was dramatic enough that you could have played a western theme- which, in fact, somebody was doing.

"Rukia?" Ichigo said. "Is THIS why you brought a stereo?"

"It's appropriate, isn't it? It's the good, the bad and the ugly!" She said cheerfully.

"…I see. Carry on, then."

"Are you ready to face your doom, Kurosaki?"

"Bring it!"

"As you wish." As dramatically as possible, Ishida reached into his pocket, and pulled out… a deck of cards. "I've been a duel master for almost ten years- prepare to face utter annihilation in a children's card game!"

"...a whaaat?" Ichigo said, stunned.

"How else does anybody ever fight duels? OBVIOUSLY card games is the only way to resolve a conflict between men, especially if they are adults!"

Gaping, Ichigo finally said,

"…I TOLD you it was a good idea to bring my duel disc system!" Cheerfully, he pulled out his own deck, and his duel disc as well. "You said, 'no way, nobody ever duels with card games!' Ha- shows what you know about human culture!"

And then they dueled.

And it was fabulous.

And not gay at all.


	8. Family is serious business

**Author's Notes:**  
And here we go again, with the longest chapter so far!. . . And with a good reminder as to why this is a "Grim" tale.

* * *

"How could you be so massively, mind-numbingly, asinine, retard STUPID?!"

"I challenged him, so… a duel it is." Ichigo said stubbornly.

Rukia looked aghast, shooting Ichigo a look of pure frustration, and violently applied the palm of her hand to her forehead. Only a few minutes had passed since their confrontation with Uryu, and most- if not all- of it had been spent with Rukia telling Ichigo what a dumbass he was, and why. She was surprisingly creative when she was angry, he noticed. To say that Rukia's reaction to what Ichigo did was downright furious would have been an understatement.

"I outright tell you to not challenge him, to not let him get to you, and of course you just have to end up doing it..."

"Oh, shut up... I swear, with that guys attitude, it was just about impossible to not call him out on any of this. I'm so gonna kick his ass tomorrow..."

Rukia wildly shook her head. "Urgh, how many times do I have to tell, you Ichigo? You don't stand a chance against him! This will be Grand Fisher all over again, except that this time, no one will help you when you're about to get killed! This is about the stupidest thing that you could have done!"

"Pah, don't you worry. I'll somehow defeat that guy, and if it is the last thing that I do!" Ichigo said, trying to pull off a reassuring smile – when in reality, he was just as worried about tomorrow's fight as Rukia.

"It will probably be the last thing that you attempt, that's for sure..." Rukia grunted.

"Look, it will be fine. I've been in plenty of tight spots before-"

Rukia slapped him across the face. "You think this would be a tight spot? You think challenging an enemy who could kill you easily is a "tight spot"? No, you're setting yourself up for a gruesome defeat at best, and you'll wind up dead at worst- what the hell would I tell your mother, you IDIOT?!"

Ichigo flinched. "Don't bring my mother into this-"

"Yes, it would hurt to face reality, wouldn't it?" Rukia spat. Turning around, she walked in the other direction. "You're an idiot, Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Where are you going?"

"Away from you!" She snapped. Like a tiny, very angry juggernaut, Rukia charged away from the scene.

She really had been angry, he noted- more emotional than he had ever seen her before. Did she care that much about him and his family? A good thing, he supposed- most importantly, however little he wanted to acknowledge it, he knew she was right. He had been angry, amped up on adrenaline and testosterone, and he had- knowing he shouldn't- challenged Ishida. Who was much stronger than he.  
_Holy shit, he was going to duel Ishida_. The realization struck him like a hammer, now that the lion's share of his anger had drained away- he was going to be fighting somebody who had every reason to hate him, who could kill him, oh god… Rukia had been right. Not that he'd be in any hurry to admit it, but she was. How could he let himself do something this stupid? Why couldn't that asshole just have turned down the damn challenge? It would've saved Ichigo a lot of trouble...

But it was too late to change anything about it. As much as Ichigo would have liked to go after Uryu to call this entire thing off, doing so would only prove his points. That Ichigo was arrogant, that he was not suited for any of this... no, the last thing that guy needed was a confirmation of his criticisms of Ichigo.

So what do about tomorrow? Fighting hollows had, from an emotional standpoint, not exactly been getting easier when Ichigo had directly been shown what it meant for hollows to be human ghosts gone mad, but it still was manageable. In this case however, Ichigo was going to outright fight a person with his powers, and then even one of his classmates... granted, an assholish classmate that he never really paid any attention to, but a classmate nonetheless. A human.

Shouldn't that be the same for Uryu, though? That guy apparently spent at least some time each day hunting hollows, so protecting people did mean something to him – would he really kill Ichigo? There was a difference between killing hollows and killing humans, after all... and Ichigo could only hope that Uryu thought the same.

Ichigo sighed. No, the more he thought about it, the more stupid the entire idea of challenging Ishida Uryu to a duel seemed to him. If Uryu won, Ichigo would be put out of business in the best case, and outright killed in the worst case. If, however, by some miracle, Ichigo won... then what? Ichigo would never be able to get himself to kill Uryu, that much was clear to him. Given how much of an asshole he was, would Uryu even acknowledge it if Ichigo won? Hell, would it even change anything? As much as Ichigo would have liked it if by defeating Uryu, the guy would simply forget all the grudges that he held and became his friend, that sort of thing only happened in a lighthearted shonen manga. This was reality, and Uryu's grudge was very much an issue that couldn't be solved that easily.

Once again, Ichigo sighed. Rukia really had been right. This was a terrible idea.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The tremors had finally died down, and Tatsuki lay still on the ground, absolutely and positively still.

"You don't suppose you killed her, Kisuke?" The cat said, and its tone indicated that if cats had the facial muscles required for frowning, it would frown rather strongly.

"Oh, ye of little faith." Kisuke said dismissively. "This science is flawless- well, as close to it as science comes." He took up a small watch.

"I can't sense her reiatsu."

"Natural," Kisuke said dismissively. "nine, eight, seven…"

"If she's gone-"

"Three, two, one…" There was a pregnant pause, lasting several seconds. Then, Tatsuki gave an audible groan, slowly propping herself up. "Excellent!" Kisuke cheered. "How are you feeling, Arisawa-san?"

Slowly standing up, her reiatsu flaring slowly, Tatsuki had the eyes and posture of a zombie. "I feel… really great." She mumbled, making a fist. "I feel… I feel really good, actually. Strong."

"Heads up!" Kisuke said, sending a rock flying at her head. Not even flinching, Tatsuki slammed her fist into it- and the stone cracked, falling to the ground in little pieces.

"Damn…" she mumbled. "Not bad."

"Your controlled reiatsu is stronger, physically, than the rock I just threw. It was saturated with spiritual energy; I am not sure you would get the same result with a normal rock." Kisuke said, smiling faintly and nodding.

"A rock? I feel amazing- I could- I could break a boulder." Tatsuki said, still sounding a mite sluggish. Looking around, she set her eyes on one, and resolutely marched over. Flexing her muscles, she gathered her reiatsu, raised her fist, and-

"Son of a BITCH!" Tatsuki swore, holding her hand. She sounded quite sober now, as if the pain had woken her from a dream. "I thought I could-"

"Look closely." Urahara said, pointing his cane to the boulder. "You made a sizeable crack." Indeed, there was one- but the boulder itself was infuriatingly whole. "Don't overexert yourself, Arisawa-san. Restraint will be your best course for now."

"But I feel like I could stop a train, or trample a herd of bison! I feel strong!" Tatsuki objected.

"A side effect of the drug, I am afraid. It seems it makes people… confident. You are strong, make no mistake, but you are only just beginning."

"…so what now?"

"Now," Urahara said, nodding to the large man- Tessai, Tatsuki had learned his name was- "we move on to the next phase."

"What's that?"

"Say, what do you think you are right now?"

"Uh, a human- a soul? Shinigami?"

"Shinigami is the goal- but right now, you are a human soul with lots of refined power. That alone will do little more than attract hollows."

"So…?"

"Up until now, all we did was temper your power. Rather like a smith working on a slab of iron that needs to be hammered extensively before it could even dream of being a sword." Tessai came back, holding a long object, wrapped in cloth. "and speaking of swords…" Kisuke took the object, removed the cloth, and revealed there a katana- a longsword, just like the ones you'd see in old samurai movies.

"What's that?"

"This, Arisawa-san, is the next part." He held out the sword to her. "That which makes a shinigami a shinigami, not just a mass of energy with a consciousness, is the zanpakutou."

Hesitantly, Tatsuki took the sword, examining it. "Zanpakutou."

"Precisely. A manifestation of one's soul, and one's strongest power. To make it simple, a sword that has a mind of its own, that will bring special powers to its owner."

"And this is it?"

"This is an _asauchi_, a sword potential. These are given to shinigami recruits, who carry it through their training. As they go along, the sword speaks to them- and when it reveals its name to them, they are shinigami. That is the fundamental aspect of what it means to be one."

"So… what do I do with this?"

"Well, we're obviously not going to wait for the years it takes for a normal shinigami," he said, grinning. "Don't worry- the process can be rushed without harm."

"What do I do?"

"Unsheathe the sword."

Tatsuki slowly did as told, inspecting the weapon. It was heavy, and the blade was a dull grey. It felt so strange- she had always known karate, but this was a weapon; a weapon designed to take the lives of others. To do harm. And this was supposed to become hers. What a mad endeavor she had gotten into…

"And next," Urahara continued, "I want you to sever your soul's chain with it. Go on."

"…that means I'm dead, right?"

"Technically, yes. Small difference, though."

"Well, I came this far…" Resolutely, Tatsuki grabbed hold of the chain, holding up the sword. She looked at it, long and hard, breathing in deeply. This was her humanity, right here, and she was about to sever it. She was going to become something different- and she had made her mind up to do this in what, a week? She was stupid, so stupid- this was too dangerous, too much!  
No. No hesitation. No thinking. Grimacing, she held up the chain, and ground the blade's edge against it hard. The chain creaked and groaned in protest, but without much trouble, it gave way.

"Good!" Urahara cheered.

"And now?"

"Now, sit down… and run the blade through your chest."

"What?!"

"Have I betrayed you so far? The idea is to begin integrating you with your sword- to become a shinigami. I went through not a little trouble to get this blade, and I did not do it just to watch you die."

Swallowing, Tatsuki sat down. What madness! What absurdity! What blind faith this took!

Nevertheless, she slowly aimed the blade towards her chest. Quick and easy, just like getting into the water quickly, before you could realize it was too cold. Taking a deep breath, she swallowed, and slid the blade into her chest hard and fast, almost down to the hilt.

Tatsuki collapsed into unconsciousness.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was late evening when Uryu got home. After having accepted Kurosaki's challenge, he had more or less aimlessly wandered around town, trying to get his mind off the fight that would take place on afternoon tomorrow. During all this, he came across no more than eight hollows, all of which he had slain with ease, but even that barely helped him finding distraction.

Uryu was well aware that he had been acting both immature and prideful towards Kurosaki, but he never would have expected him to challenge him to a fight. Uryu had just been hoping for Kurosaki to attack him without any thought about the possible consequences, which only would have further proven Uryu's point. Outright forcing Kurosaki to not go after hollows should have been easily possible then...

But now, Uryu had gotten himself into an outright duel. That Kurosaki would even suggest such a thing had definitely caught him off guard, and broken the bastard facade that he had put up to get Kurosaki to quit. Then again... there was no way that Kurosaki would be able to defeat him. Uryu would simply have to make sure that his victory would be quick and definite, showing Kurosaki the difference in skill and strength between them. Yes, that should be more than enough to convince him to quit... at least he hoped so. Kurosaki Ichigo was very stubborn. Getting him to admit defeat in first place would be hard... but he would have to. There was no way that Uryu would go as far as killing him.

Back in the present day, Uryu had just gotten out his keys, and was about to unlock the door, when he realized that it was already unlocked.

He sighed. That could mean only one thing.

His father was already home.

Taking a deep breath, Uryu opened the door and went in, and sure enough, there was light in the kitchen. Slowly walking, he entered the kitchen, where he found his father, Ishida Ryuken sitting at the table and eating dinner. When he noticed Uryu entering the room, he didn't even look up.

"You have been out again." Ryuken stated more than asked.

"Yes." Uryu quietly confirmed.

"And if I'm not mistaken, you came across this shinigami has been in this town for several weeks now."

"How did you-?" Uryu began, surprised, only to be interrupted by his father.

"I may not use my powers, but even so I can very well sense the spiritual activity that is going on this town. I have been sensing this new shinigami reiatsu for a while now... why can't you just leave this entire business to that person? The living should not meddle in the affairs of the dead, Uryu. I wish you would finally realize this." Not even once while talking did Ryuken look up from his dinner.

"That guy is hardly suited to be a protector!" Uryu shouted. Most of the conversations with his father ended like this: He got worked up, and his father remained aloof. "He is not even a real shinigami! He's nothing more but an untrained substitute! Every day he misses at least a dozen hollows! He is not even close to my level of skill! I can't just leave the protection of this town in his hands!"

"Oh, of course. Honor as a Quincy. The right thing to do. Yes, yes, I remember these arguments... my father always brought them up. Honor and doing the right thing is nice, but it doesn't earn you any money. It only puts you into unnecessary danger. And in your case," Ryuken finally looked up from his dinner, and gave Uryu a disapproving look "it does not substitute education. You are only wasting your time with this all, Uryu. I did not say anything against this before, since I was hoping that you would realize that only the dead should look after the dead, but it seems like you are not willing to let go off this foolishness so easily. So, what did you do with that substitute shinigami? Threaten him? Showing him the difference of skill between you and him?"

"I- he challenged me to a duel."

"A duel to settle your differences... how original. I honestly hope that this substitute shinigami wins... maybe that would finally open your eyes." And with that, Ryuken focused on his dinner once more.

Taken aback, Uryu stared at his father for a moment, before he turned around, rushed out of the kitchen, and headed into his room, slamming the door behind him.  
Ever since Uryu's grandfather Soken had died over ten years ago, the relationship between Uryu and his father had been very distant. No matter how well Uryu did at school, no matter how well his Quincy powers developed, his father never even once praised him, or opened up to him. Over the years, Uryu had simply started caring less and less about this, instead devoting himself to his studies, and protecting the town from hollows. No, his father's opinion did not interest him... no matter what his father said, he would defeat Ichigo, and once and for all prove to him that he was the better protector.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The school day passed in a haze for Ichigo; he was barely able to focus. A mixture of fear and excitement was building in his chest, and no matter how much he tried not to think about it, his thoughts always came back to it- the duel. Rukia was nowhere to be seen- he assumed she was still angry with him. He sighed to himself; he could really have used somebody to talk to, even if all she'd do was scold him. A scolding wouldn't really be out of order, really…

At last, the day ended, and Ichigo collected his things, and hurried out of the building, not even bothering to say good bye to his friends, made a short stop at home leaving most of his things there, and telling his mother that he'd be going out for a while. All that mattered now was getting there, getting to that graveyard, getting this over with.  
His mind raced, one option after another crossing through his mind. He could run away, not show up. He could give up being a shinigami- it would make sense; it hadn't even been something he wanted to do! Why did he cling to this at all? This had been Rukia's problem from day one, and now it turned out the city already had a protector- why did he have to make it his problem? This was his cue to leave the stage, study like a good boy, and finally support his family the way he had meant to.

A hundred and one rational arguments ran through his head, one more logical than the next, and yet he found himself stepping swiftly towards the Karakura graveyard.  
Why did he do this? Pride? To protect the innocent? Was he just being pigheaded? Was it all of them? No matter which one, he found himself unable to turn away, even as he opened the graveyard's heavy iron gate.

Gravely, he walked towards the meeting place. He fiddled in his pocket with the gikongan, making ready to use it. Almost there… god, what was he even doing?

"You really are an idiot, you know that?" Rukia. Here, after all. He felt like his heart was doing a somersault; he felt like cheering. Instead, he said,

"And here you are, watching this idiot going to do something really stupid. Are you a masochist or something?"

"Who else will pick up the pieces when he's done with you?" Rukia looked stern, but he felt like there was a hint of concern there after all. "Honestly, you would be lost without me, Kurosaki Ichigo."

"…yeah, I guess I would." Ichigo said, smiling lightly. "C'mon... I gotta go and get myself killed, I suppose."

Just as it had been back when Ichigo had encountered Grand Fisher, the graveyard was completely empty. In their search for Uryu, they went more or less all around the graveyard, before finally finding him kneeling in front of in front of a fairly remote grave, and... praying? Did that guy have a family member that had their grave here as well, or what?

Exchanging uncertain looks, Ichigo and Rukia slowly approached Uryu, who, as Ichigo was just now noting, was wearing the same kind of white suit as yesterday.

"So you came." He said as Ichigo and Rukia were getting closer to him, finishing his prayers and slowly getting up while doing so.

"Of course! I'd never be late to my chance to kick your ass, _Quincy_!" Ichigo boasted, trying his best to act confident, when in reality his heart was beating so wildly that he couldn't help but to think that Uryu would see through his feigned confidence immediately. "Why did you choose this place for our battle, anyway? It can't just be it's remote – we have plenty of places like that around town, so why here?" He asked, trying to stall some time before they would begin their match, hoping that he would be able to calm down in the meantime.

Thankfully though, Uryu neither seemed to realize that Ichigo was feigning his confidence, nor that he was trying to buy himself time – or if he did, at least he didn't show it. "Well, you were quite insistent on finding out what 'my deal' was, were you not? I think this place is best for explaining things to you. You see, I suppose things more or less started with him." He said coolly, pointing to the grave that he had been kneeling in front of.

Even though he didn't think that leaving Uryu out of sight was the best of ideas, Ichigo still looked at the grave as he was told to. The name "Ishida Soken" was engraved into the stone, the writing already slightly weathered. Whoever this man was, he must have already been dead for a while. "'Ishida Soken'? Who was that? A sibling of yours? An uncle?"

"Ishida Soken was my grandfather. He was the one that taught me the way of the Quincy... you know, among Quincy survivors, he was fairly influential. Ever since that massacre of a war took place, us Quincy were being persecuted by the shinigami, and killed whenever we were tracked down. My grandfather wanted to change this... he tried to make amends with the Gotei. He felt that the Gotei was justified in their war against the Quincy, and proposed that the surviving Quincy would create ties to the Gotei, technically enlisting them as a first-response squad that would react to hollow attacks, and defend humans from hollows until the shinigami would arrive and dispatch the hollow, thereby assuring that the balance remains." He paused, and stared at the grave.

For a moment, Ichigo was tempted to make a comment of sorts, but figured that for now, it would be best to remain silent. Then, after a moment, Uryu finally continued. "But the Gotei never even bothered to respond to the proposal. The persecution continued. And then, one day... about thirteen years ago, an absolutely massive amount of powerful hollows attacked this town. My grandfather, with whom I had been training at the time, went to fight them, ordering me to go into hiding while he did so. I still followed him a bit, and watched him fight... he was trying to hold the hollows off until the shinigami would arrive – surely, they couldn't just ignore an hollow attack of this scale, and would send reinforcements soon?" He looked up from the grave, and gave Rukia an angry glare. "But nobody came. I was forced to watch my grandfather fight until he no longer could, until he was exhausted to a point where the hollows could kill him – and that they did. Before the hollows could however even claim their victims, shinigami reinforcements finally arrived, and defeated all of them. At first I thought their timing was just an unlucky coincidence, that there must have been a good reason for their delay... but based on what I could hear them say, they were purposefully late. They let my grandfather just die, and even took his body with them when they left."

Ichigo took his gikongan out, swallowed it, and stepped out, sword resting on his shoulder.

"Well," he said, not taking a stance quite yet, "I guess I understand why you hate me so much. But I'm not one of them."

"No. You're a conceited child fumbling in the dark, thinking you've got some clue what is actually going on. You don't." Uryu said flatly.

"Were you born a dick, or is it just a hard earned skill?" Ichigo shot back. "I'm ready to get myself shot up as much as you can do it- but I got a few choice words before we do that."

"This ought to be good…" Uryu murmured.

"We both want the same thing. We both want to protect souls from being preyed upon. We want people to be safe. We want them to find the afterlife," Ichigo slowly began walking a wide circle around Uryu, "but here you are, ready to shoot me down- why? Because of a grudge?"

"It's no grudge-"

"Bull-shit." Ichigo said dismissively. "Even if I'm only ten percent as capable as you, then that's ten percent more souls saved. But here you are, trying to shut me down. You're doing this because you're nursing your hate like it was your firstborn, because that's all you have."

"You think you know me?" Uryu sneered.

"I know enough. So what else are you nursing besides hatred? Ambition? Tell me, how many friends do you have?"  
Uryu remained silent.  
"I thought so. No, not a lot of time for friends when you're studying full time and hunting hollows, too, I suppose." Slowly, very slowly, the circle became narrower. "You know what I think? You've got a sad, lonely little life, and the only thing that makes you feel special is that you're this big, strong hero in secret. You're a superhero. You're Batman. You're Willhelm Tell. And now somebody else is doing what you do, and your lonely little shit brain can't handle that."

"Shut UP!" Uryu said. How dared he talk like that; how dared he talk like he knew him?

"Strike a nerve, did I? I guess this is all just theory- but I can't think of any other reason you'd try and shut down somebody who never so much as looked at you before, much less threatened you."

"You arrogant-"

"Who's arrogant? All I've ever done is try to help- you were the one who came to me, trying to bully me into just giving that up! You know, I used to think life was all about me, about looking out for me and my family- and I haven't given up on that, but I know there's a bigger picture. Do you?"

"You've got some nerve, Kurosaki Ichigo." He was barely holding himself cool; his blood was boiling.

"Maybe you're better than me, or whatever," Ichigo said, staring intensely at Uryu, "but at least I'm not alone. So what's your-"

And mid-sentence, he hopped forward raising his sword. Uryu instantly raised his arm, the spectral bow forming, but Ichigo went into a roll, coming in low and sprinting forward, swinging in a wide arc. The blade was coming in, hard and fast- he would hit him, he really would, he could just feel it slamming into Ishida's face-

And then suddenly, Uryu was standing twenty feet back, having seemingly teleported.

"Damn!" Ichigo swore.

"Distracting me, then sneak attacking? You're much more devious than I thought, Kurosaki."

Ichigo grunted. "I figured it was my only shot. If it helps, I meant everything I said, you loser." He looked at his blade; there was a small trickle of blood going down. He looked at Ishida; he had a small stream of blood coming down his face from a shallow cut at his cheek. Ichigo gave a whistle. "First blood. If this was a real duel, I guess that would mean I won."

"Aiming for the head- are you trying to kill me?"

"I never really thought it would hit." Ichigo admitted. "Caught you by surprise though, didn't I?"

"Yes." Uryu said calmly, readjusting his spectacles. "I even had to use _hirenkyaku_- I think I underestimated you." His reiatsu began to surge, and it immediately became apparent to Ichigo that it was bigger than his own by far. "Thanks for that lesson, Kurosaki. I will take you seriously from here on out."

"Oh, really now? I feel so honored, _lord_ Ishida." Ichigo taunted, once more trying to hide his own fear and insecurities. In truth, the fact that Ichigo could feel Uryu's reiatsu to begin with had essentially already been a confirmation that he was essentially screwed; Ichigo could still only barely sense reiatsu in general. For him to outright feel something, it needed to be either very strong, or essentially right up in his face – and right now, Uryu fulfilled both criteria. "Better get my body out of here, Rukia! This all could get rather ugly."

Rukia, who had thus far only silently watched Ichigo and Uryu talk and have their first clash, gave Ichigo a silent look, before she did what she was asked to.

"Don't die on me." She whispered, as she and Ichigo's body passed him. In response, Ichigo only gave her a light nod. He couldn't show any weakness in front of Uryu...

Once he was certain that Rukia was far enough away, he raised his sword towards Uryu in challenge. "So what, can we get started for re-"

Before Ichigo could even finish his sentence, Uryu had already raised his arms, and fired three shots from his bow! Only narrowly, Ichigo managed to dodge the projectiles, which hit the ground behind him, creating small craters. Determined to not give Uryu another chance to catch him off-guard, Ichigo began charging at him, rapidly changing his direction, making a few jumps while doing so. His intention was to evade Uryu's shots, confuse him through erratic movements, and get up close to him, and at first it seemed like his tactic succeeded, too- not a single shot hit Ichigo, and he made it close to Uryu without any problem, already getting ready to make a wide slash-!

When he realized that Uryu hadn't been shooting at him at all. When a fierce pain shot through his right arm, he realized that it was already too late, and jumped back.

"Did you honestly believe that you could land a hit on me with a simplistic strategy like that?"

Ichigo looked down at his side. Uryu had shot him right through his right forearm, which was bleeding heavily, dyeing his uniform an even darker shade of black.  
Without saying a single word, Ichigo got into a fighting stance. Just what the hell had he gotten himself into...

* * *

oOo

* * *

She was in limbo. Everything was a dull shade of some colour between white and grey. She might have called it a world of mist, except worlds usually had a surface for you to stand on, and mist usually meant you could see at least a few feet ahead of yourself. Even bringing her palm to her face, she could barely make out the contours of her fingers.

How long would this last? What trial was this- had she died? Had this all been some sick game?

And then there was the buzzing, like static, like when you turned the TV on or off. It came in intervals, and sometimes it was almost like a voice, if it had been stored on a file that had gone corrupt. Where the hell was this?  
No, better ask- how did she get out of here? What was she supposed to achieve like this?

"-ing so soo-" The voice came out of nowhere, and died out as quick as it had come, ending in more static.

"Who- who was that? Who are you?" Tatsuki shouted, feeling anxious. Wasn't she alone, here in what she presumed was her own mind?

"-ar- edy- ar- oice yet?"

More static. Breathing heavily, Tatsuki focused. Intently, she stared into the whiteness. She stared for what might have been years, or just five minutes- she had no way of knowing. Then slowly, she began to see- the odd shape in the mist here and there, the hints of a contour. Focusing so hard her head began to ache, Tatsuki stared and stared, trying to see…  
And there really was something out there, in the white masses. She could see an arm, only for it to be obscured and replaced with a foot, then a knee and a leg, then the upper part of a helmet…

"What in the world…?" She mumbled.

"-etter."

"Who are you?" She called again. She could hear nothing, but at long last she began to see it- it was like a shadow standing up, a silhouette. It had a sword, she could determine. Tall, strong, like a warrior… carefully, she tried to approach it. For a little while, it was as if she got closer. Then, as she stretched out her hand, to connect with it, then it was suddenly over. In an instant, the whiteness began to dissipate, replaced with the familiar darkness of sleep.

In just that one short moment between dream and awakening, an image burnt itself into her retina- a samurai's mask, coloured in orange, black stripes running over it…

And then she opened her eyes, sitting up. She blinked; she was back in Urahara's basement. Looking around, she saw him, the cat, his subordinates.

"Did I, uh…?" She said, not sure what to say.

"It seems you were successful, Arisawa-san. You are on your way to becoming a fully-fledged shinigami."

Still feeling fairly dizzy, Tatsuki tried to get up, since she had apparently had fallen on the floor in the time where she had been, in lack of a better term, unconscious. Doing so took longer than it should have since for whatever reason, Tatsuki's body felt unusually heavy, though she figured that that might be coming from her having been unconscious.

Once she finally managed to properly stand up, she looked down on herself, to see that she was now wearing the same kind of black robes that she had seen Ichigo wear. "Sweeeet..." She murmured.

"Does that mean that we can get to the actual training now?" Tatsuki asked, as the last bits of dizziness left her.

Urahara chuckled. "I am afraid that this will still have to wait, Arisawa-san. I would indeed moreso suggest that for the time being, you just head home."

"But- why?! All we really did today was this second drug thing, and me stabbing myself! Don't we have enough time to get started on the training as well?"

"Are you aware of how long exactly you have been out, Arisawa-san?" Urahara asked innocently, pointing to a clock on a nearby wall.

Tatsuki looked at the clock. It showed that it was around 4 PM. The last time that Tatsuki had looked at the clock was when she had just taken the second drug, at which point it was about 10 AM.

"I have been out for six hours?!"

"Mh, not quite." Urahara calmly objected. "You're still off by a good twenty-four hours."

Tatsuki's eyes began to twitch. "I have been unconscious for... over a day?"

"If it makes you feel any better, you did look rather cute when you shifted from an outright unconsciousness into simple sleep." The cat interjected, using a matter-of-factly tone, just like Urahara.

"Uh... thanks, I guess?" Tatsuki somehow managed to say, despite the absolutely overwhelming feeling of being baffled. It didn't quite happen every day that a cat off all people called her 'cute'... but that wasn't exactly her main concern. No, the more important thing to worry about was- "OH MY GOD! What will my parents say?! They probably have already called for the police!"

"No cause for panic, Arisawa-san. I already took the liberty of changing your parents' memories so that they think that you have been staying at the apartment of your friend Inoue-san. But I do suppose it would be better if you headed home as soon as possible, yes."

Quickly, Tatsuki rushed over to her body.

"Careful now," Urahara said. "This is the final part for today- re-entering your body."

"What's so special about that?"

"It will determine whether the process has been entirely successful or not."

"Huh? I thought I was-"

"Do try to enter your body. Nice and easy- no rush."

Giving him a look, Tatsuki sat down, her spirit quietly fusing with her body once more. For just a second, she felt a tinge- then suddenly, it was as if every cell of her body was on fire, exploding. The pain was everywhere, covering her from head to toe- even her eyes burned. She could barely think hard enough to scream.

Somewhere, in the corners of her perception that weren't occupied by the pain, she noticed Urahara approaching her.

"What you are currently experiencing is the result of your body rejecting your soul. Since your soul underwent major changes, your body no longer recognizes it. This is no cause for worry, Arisawa-san; the pain means that it is still possible for your soul to enter your body. Would you be feeling nothing at all, the entire procedure would have been a failure... but as things are, it seems like everything was a full success. Now, if you would excuse... there is an important event currently taking place, which I would not want to miss entirely. I will leave you in the care of my subordinates, so that they can take care of you once you lose your consciousness again – which, from the look of things, should be in another few seconds. Well, see you later, Arisawa-san!"

"HELP ME!" Tatsuki screamed, writhing on the ground. "PLEASE GOD, MAKE IT STOP! AAAAH!" She wanted out, she wanted away- anything but this constant sensation of pure, undiuted pain.

"The pain should pass in... five minutes, give or take." Urahara said cheerfully. "Nothing I can do will help- you will simply have to endure it." He turned his back, walking to the exit. "Come back up when it's gone back enough that you can walk."

"NO!" Tatsuki managed, gritting her teeth. "NO! GET ME OUT! PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!" She hammered her fists into the ground, rolling around, spasming.

"Sorry, kid," the cat said, "I really am. If it helps, this is the worst you'll feel."

"DON'T LEAVE ME!" Tatsuki screamed. She lay alone, writhing, kicking, flailing, wishing she was dead.

* * *

oOo

* * *

He was breathing heavily, half dried blood clotting up his shinigami robes. He had, in the five minutes following Uryu's declaration that he would take him seriously, not taken any major injuries aside from the one to his sword arm- but he wasn't even touching him, and he could barely lift his sword, let alone swing it. He was bleeding from a dozen small cuts, some intentionally done by Uryu, others the results of very narrow dodges at the last second.

"Your running skills are impressive, Kurosaki," Uryu said, adjusting his glasses again, "but it's over. You are tired, weak, and so beneath my skill level that I feel bad fighting you. This is not a duel anymore; it is a petty game of endurance on your part. Give up."

"Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" Ichigo spat. "Sorry- if you want me to give, you'll have to force it out of me."

"Don't be so prideful. A wise man knows when to yield."

"Pride? Look who's talkin'- it was your pride that started this!" Ichigo put his sword down, resting its tip on the ground. "I'm not a wise man- I'm a dumb punk, and I'm as stubborn as I'm badly mannered."

"Self perception, at least," Uryu murmured.

"Shut it! I'm not through-"

At lightning speed, an arrow hit Ichigo's shoulder, followed by one to his side.

"Yes, you are. Yield."

"Like hell."

"It's over. Saying you have a fighting chance is to pretend- give up, and leave protecting Karakura to me."

"I'm... still standing, ain't I?" Ichigo breathed raggedly, more blood pouring out from his fresh wounds. Slowly, he walked towards Ishida, having dropped his sword entirely. He could barely keep his balance.

"If you weren't a shinigami, those wounds would kill you. As is, you're barely conscious."

"Tis but a scratch!"

"...if you say so." Uryu lowered his bow, letting Ichigo come close. "I didn't enjoy doing this, but..."

He looked as if he was about to say something, but Ichigo didn't care. Mustering what strength he had left, he took a big step forward, and slammed his forehead into Uryu's. Not having expected this, the Quincy reeled back, his head spinning. Refusing to give up what little momentum he had, Ichigo spun his leg around in a roundhouse kick. Uryu caught it just barely, but he groaned as it hit his arm. Ichigo kicked again, following up by jumping into the air, slamming both his feet into Uryu's chest. The Quincy staggered, and fell over on the ground, hard, and Ichigo landed on his feet, barely standing.

"HA!" Ichigo shouted. "You... hit the ground... first..." He breathed heavily, trying to stop the world from spinning. "That means... I... win!" He struggled to stay upright. "I... win."

With that, he fell over, finally going unconscious.

Uryu, groaning with pain, got up to his feet. He'd feel those hits for a week at least; Kurosaki kicked like a mule, and unlike him, Uryu himself did not have a shinigami's otherworldly constitution. "Damn..." he groaned. There was a lot he could fault Kurosaki Ichigo for, but not for a lack of tenacity.

"So you won." It was that girl, Rukia. The depowered shinigami. "What will you do next?"

"I..." He began, not knowing what to say.

"Will you kill him?"

"Goodness, no!" He exclaimed. "I'm not a murderer- I'd never sink to the same level as those rotten shinigami!"

"So what was this all for? What was the point?"

He remained silent.

"Think about that." Rukia said. Was that a tear in her eye he saw as she walked over to Ichigo's beaten, bloody body? Quietly, he turned around, and slowly began walking away. After only a few steps, he stopped once more.

"When that idiot wakes up, tell him this: Being alone isn't easy. Not when the only family that you've ever known is a caring grandfather that died over a decade ago, and an aloof father that you can't please, no matter what you do. Kurosaki has lost his father, right? At least he still has his sisters and his mother..." He said without turning around, scratching his head. "So... just make sure that in the future, you two coordinate yourselves better with my work, so that we actually get all the hollows."

Having more or less said what was on his mind, Uryu walked away. He realized that what he had asked Kuchiki Rukia to tell Kurosaki was probably incredibly cheesy, but... he didn't exactly care about that anymore. Social interactivity had never been quite his strength, anyway. Having somebody help him fight against hollows probably really would come in handy... even if it was a loudmouth like Kurosaki.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The first thing that Ichigo noticed when he regained consciousness was the pain, and at the same time, also the lack thereof. The pain he noticed because every spot on his body that had hurt before he lost consciousness did in fact still hurt now. This, however, was also where the lack of pain came in: Everything hurt less than before.

"You have more luck than you have brains, you know that?" A quite familiar voice interrupted his half-spirited musing about pain. "Though, that isn't exactly too hard to accomplish, I'd say."

"...This is how people are greeted into the afterlife? Not exactly the kind of welcome that I've been expecting..." Ichigo grunted silently.

"Well, sorry to break it to you, but you're not quite dead. So would you mind actually getting up? That would make talking a bit easier."

Slowly, while trying to ignore that the majority of his body was still very much hurting, Ichigo stood up and opened his eyes. He was standing at the graveyard's shrine, was back in his body, and Rukia was next to him. Uryu was nowhere to be seen. "Where the hell did that Willhelm Tell wannabe go? Did I actually defeat him?

Rukia snickered. "You wish. No, what actually happened is that..."

One explanation later, Ichigo stared at Rukia incredulously. "Did that guy have a change of heart, or something? I mean, from what you said, it actually sounds like he stopped acting like an asshole."

"I suppose he really did... I guess in the end, all of that attitude of his was just an act – at least to an extent. Perhaps all your talk during his fight actually got to him?"

"Hell if I know. I'm just glad that this all is over, and that I'm still alive. I think it's about time that we head back home..." Ichigo said, and wanted to already make the first step... which did not exactly quite work out with his injuries as well as the pain. He collapsed. "Ouch!"

"We better wait a little more with that. As you might have already guessed, I'm still not done with healing you." Rukia noted in a slightly deadpan tone.

"Yeah... I noticed." He said, managing to chuckle. He wasn't exactly in the best of conditions, had been utterly defeated by Uryu, and taken plenty of injuries... but he was still alive. That alone was already a better outcome to this all than he had hoped for, so he had really nothing to complain about.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was night, and the streets were almost empty. Normally, even Tatsuki would be a little wary of walking through town at night- there were rapists, robbers, killers; it could happen- but right now, it all felt irrelevant. Hell, she might welcome a rapist- let him try it, see what would happen. See how he'd like her newfound power, how he'd like his ribcage when it was pulverized.

But nothing disturbed her as she walked through town in the dark of night. She was left with her own thoughts, and it all felt… surreal. She had really made it- but was it worth it? She wasn't really human anymore, and this was all for Orihime- what would she think if she knew?  
She shook her head. No, it was too late to have second thought- she was stuck with what she had, and all she could do was make the best of it. She steered her steps towards Orihime's little apartment- she couldn't very well go home, now that her parents thought she had been staying at Orihime's. Even if this hadn't been the case, she'd still go here. She needed the company now, needed to know this wasn't all for nothing.

The pain in her body had died down now, being only a dull ache. The five minutes had passed, although it had seemed like five years to Tatsuki- and slowly, oh so slowly, the unbearable pain had become bearable, then a slight burn, then just this dull ache. Urahara had told her not to pop out of her body too often; she still needed to fuse her soul with her body as much as possible.  
Still, she had done it. She was a reaper. The world had gone insane, and she had gone insane with it, and she had no idea if it was the right choice or not.

Finally, she arrived at Orihime's apartment. The door was open- she really should lock it, she kept telling her she should- but she walked in, feeling at home at once.

"I'm here." She said, loud enough that Orihime could hear her.

"Welcome home!" Orihime cheered back.

Tatsuki walked in, and sat down next to Orihime on the couch. Some show was on TV, but Orihime didn't seem to pay attention. She hugged Tatsuki, and proceeded to babble on about this and that outlandish thing, as she always would. Tatsuki smiled; her human life was still here, and she wasn't giving up on it.

"…by the way, Tatsuki-chan," Orihime said, cutting herself off, "where were you all day yesterday?"

"I uh, I was sick." Tatsuki managed. Lying to Orihime felt plain wrong, but what could she do?

"I called your mom." Uh oh. "She said you were spending the night at my place."

"…what did you tell her?"

"That you were here and that I was just an airhead. She believed me."

An awkward silence ensued.

"You don't have to tell me, Tatsuki-chan," Orihime said solemnly, "but… I really worried for you. What were you doing?"

"Ah, crap…" Tatsuki said, nervously running a hand through her hair, desperately trying to think of some excuse.

No, wait- why the hell was she making excuses to begin with? This had all been for Orihime; she should know. Maybe she had powers too- she deserved to know.

"Look," Tatsuki began, "it's like this…"

And Tatsuki explained, at length and detail, what had happened to her, from that night with Ichigo up till now, about hollows, ghosts, shinigami, how she had done all this to be able to help somehow, even a little…  
And finally, when she was finished, she gave Orihime a look. Her reaction was one she hadn't quite expected.

"Oh, Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime giggled. "That's just silly- you know, sometimes you say the weirdest things."

Tatsuki looked at her incredulously. "All right, don't believe me. That's fine." She reached into her pocket. "This," she said, holding the small object up, "is a gikongan." Quickly, she swallowed the pill, and there she stood, robes and all. Orihime looked puzzled, looking at Tatsuki's body.

"What was that, Tatsuki-chan?"

"Stay still." Tatsuki ordered the mod soul. She stood up before Orihime, leaning in close. "Do you really not see me?" Orihime jerked, giving a small 'eek!' "I'm right here. I began seeing things that evening- don't you feel me?"

Looking worried, Orihime looked around herself. Tatsuki-chan had gone limp, and… she felt weird. There had been some noise right now, only not noise, more like the vocal equivalent of that little shadow you might see in the corner of your eye… what was going on?

"I'm here, Orihime," Tatsuki said, gently putting a hand to Orihime's cheek, "so don't be afraid. I did this to protect you."

Slowly, Orihime looked up. She felt something touching her face- and it felt nice. Familiar. She blinked, and slowly, there was something… just a little something before her eyes. Tentatively, she reached her hands out, fumbling. She could feel a body. Arms, shoulders. And right before her eyes, she could see something take shape- with every blink, it seemed she could see more. Black cloth, a sheathed sword- and Tatsuki-chan's face.

"I do see you, Tatsuki-chan." She said at last "You… you really are…"

"I know." Tatsuki said, sitting down next to Orihime. "It's crazy, I know. I- I didn't mean to bring you into this, but then again, we were targeted once so I just figured you should know and-" She was rambling, and she knew it.

"How can I help you?" Orihime said. "You shouldn't do this alone- so let me help."

It was such an Orihime thing to say, Tatsuki thought. Quickly, she hugged her, long and hard. "I'll- I'll see what you can do." She said, at last.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The process of healing Ichigo's injuries to a point where he could walk without collapsing ultimately took Rukia multiple hours, so that it was already late evening when her and Ichigo finally got to leave the graveyard. Both of them were still very much glad that the duel with Uryu had worked out somehow, and therefore took things slowly on their way back. Ichigo's only concern was that he had turned off his cellphone before he had left home, so that he would not be interrupted during his fight – with how long he had been away now, he could only hope that his mother wasn't already worried.

Much to the surprise of both Rukia and Ichigo, though, the apartment was completely empty when the two of them returned; not a single light was turned on, and nobody was to be seen. Curiously, but also carefully, they checked each room of the apartment.

"Did your mother say something before you left home this afternoon?" Rukia asked, as she checked Karin's room.

"I don't remember her saying anything..." Ichigo replied, who was currently checking the kitchen. "But then again, I was not exactly in the mood to really pay attention, so-" He interrupted himself.

"Ichigo, what's wrong? Did you find anything?"

No response came. After a moment of silence, in which Rukia already considered going to the kitchen herself, she heard footsteps quickly going from the kitchen to the front door. Ichigo opened the door, rushed out, and slammed the door behind him. Slightly unsettled, Rukia made her way to the kitchen. The light was still on, and everything seemed completely normal... until Rukia noticed a note lying on the floor.

Slowly Rukia bowed down, picked the note up, and read it, her eyes growing wide while doing so. "This-!"

* * *

Ichigo ran. Even though the pain from his injuries was still present, and was making him feel like every single step he did would be the last one that he would be able to take, he kept running. Compared to the turmoil that was building up within him, the pain was a minor issue. He couldn't stop; not after what he had seen what was written on that note. It had to be a lie. It had to be a prank; a terrible, terrible joke.

But at the same time, he realized that his mother would never joke about this sort of thing.

On his way to the Karakura hospital, only a few people came across him, Ichigo paid attention to none of them. All that mattered to him was that he reached the hospital. On his way, he silently prayed, cried out to whatever deity might listen to him, pleaded that what he feared hadn't come true; not after how well everything had been going recently. Not after he had gotten the power to protect his family, not after how this duel came out, _not after her condition had improved-_

He had finally arrived at the hospital. A quick question at the reception, giving his name... the second floor. The receptionist shouted after him to not run, but Ichigo didn't listen. He ran up the stairs, taking three steps at a time, praying, hoping, despairing...

And then he finally was on the hallway on the second floor. He could see his mother and Karin in front of a door, not too far away... Karin had sunken down on the floor, burrowing her face in her hands... his mother was comforting her...

Ichigo walked slowly towards them. This could not be real... it had to be an illusion, a dream, _anything but reality_.

After a moment, Masaki noticed him, and looked up. Her expression was somber and it was clear that she had cried... after Ichigo only silently stared at her for another moment, she slowly shook her head. His entire body tensed, and his eyes grew wide. No... no, no, no...

Ichigo rushed over to the door, pulled it open, and entered. The door fell shut behind him.

The one thing that Ichigo had been fearing since he left Rukia in the apartment, the one image that had been on his mind on the entire way here... it was right in front of him. Yuzu was lying on a hospital bed, pale, more pale than she had ever been in her life, all sorts of hospital things attached to her... her eyes were closed, almost as if she were sleeping.

Ichigo could feel how his legs lost all of their strength, he could no longer force himself to continue. He fell down on his knees. The tears that he had been holding back for all this time now slowly rolled down his face. This was reality. An inescapable truth. "Yuzu..." He whispered.

"Onii-chan?"

Ichigo raised his head. The voice had come from somewhere close by, female, insecure... familiar. He looked around... and then he saw her.

Standing next to Yuzu's bed was... her. Yuzu was standing next to her a own body, a chain protruding from the center of her chest, giving her brother an uncertain look.


	9. Life is a Conveyor Belt

**Author's Notes:**  
Angst-ish stuff is hard to write. . .  
I suppose on behalf of the low amount of readers, not many people care for the wait, but I hope that those that do still are glad to see this update.

* * *

"What did you find?" Yoruichi's voice came, as Kisuke went through the door to his store, having just returned home.

"So cold- aren't you even going to say 'welcome home', Yoruichi-san?" He said cheerfully. "I collected a lot of data, though- the both of them are prime subjects."

"How was the Quincy?"

"In tip top shape, for his age- he'll go far, given time. Excellent reiatsu control, and a lot more experienced than Kurosaki." He looked thoughtful for a bit. "Susceptible to simple mind games, though- he isn't as collected as he seems."

"Is Kurosaki all right?"

"Bloodied, not badly wounded." He nodded. "He'll recover just fine."

"Do you think Arisawa realized yet that she was tested only to refine your methods for Kurosaki's sake?" Yoruichi said, sounding almost accusing.

"I wouldn't say only for his sake- she is coming into her own very nicely. Given her current rate of growth, she will surpass Kurosaki-san… for a little while." He walked over to the counter, and began typing on a small machine, reading from a note pad he had taken out of his pocket. "Besides, she's smart- she probably has an inkling already. Besides, what would she have to complain about? She will have powers, freedom to live her life, the strength to protect her girlfriend…"

"You're a dirty old man, Kisuke," Yoruichi admonished him.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure." He smiled mischievously. "There is one hiccup in all of this, though."

The cat didn't frown, but its tone was enough. "What kind of hiccup?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo is about to go through hell, of a kind completely different from anything I would give him, and completely unrelated to the spiritual world too. Well, almost."

"Speak clearly!"

"Suffice to say there's a real risk we may have to write him out of our plans- we'll have to wait, see and be very careful."

"What part of 'speak clearly' was it that you didn't understand, Kisuke?" The cat asked, the tone of its low voice obviously annoyed.

Urahara sighed with mock disappointment. "Can't get away with being cryptic towards you, can I, Yoruichi-san? Well, if you really want to know... one of Kurosaki Ichigo's younger sisters- Yuzu, I believe her name was – she died. Barely fifteen years old, the poor girl... and if my senses did not betray me, her spirit did not pass on by itself." He shook his head. "I suppose no matter what Kurosaki chooses to do about her spirit, he will go through a personal hell. It all really is just a shame."

The cat gave him a calculating look – as calculating as cat's look could be, that is. "Are you saying that it is a shame that this might mess up your plans, or do you feel actual compassion for the boy?"

"Don't you know me well enough to know the answer for yourself?" Urahara said, quietly chuckling.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Time seemed to fly by for Ichigo. He could no longer focus on anything... everything that happened after the moment where he saw Yuzu's spirit became a blur of sorts. The instant that he had realized what he was seeing, what had happened to Yuzu's soul, he could no longer stay around. He rushed out of the room, out of the hospital, just away. He simply couldn't do this; he couldn't just talk to the spirit of his own deceased sister...

He had spent most of the night wandering around town aimlessly, trying to get his mind off things somehow – provoke some thugs, slay some hollows, he would have welcomed just about anything... but no distraction was to be found, no matter where he went. Ichigo would have given just about anything to freeze time, to not have to deal with the things that would be coming next. But of course, time went on.

After a few hours, in the middle of the night, Ichigo headed back home. His mother and Karin were already home and asleep, so the only person waiting for him was Rukia. When Ichigo saw her, he was half expecting her to reveal another mission to him, chide him for staying out this long, do something – but she only gave him a look of distinct, genuine compassion.

"I- I guess you want- I guess we should-" he began, trying to talk, trying to pretend things were normal, just for a minute. It was a bad act; his voice was barely stable.  
Rukia said nothing, only quietly walking towards him, and to his surprise, pulling him into a hug.

"Hey-" he said. His first instinct was to shove her off, but his arm could barely muster the effort to rise, feebly resting on Rukia's shoulder. Unable to help himself, Ichigo cried quietly, leaning on Rukia's petite frame. Not a word was exchanged, saved from the occasional soothing noise from Rukia, and not a word really needed to be said- he could just barely keep himself functional, and somehow, this helped just a little.

Eventually, after god knows how long, Ichigo let go. He opened his mouth, trying to say something, but found that all the words had run away.

"Will you be okay?" Rukia said quietly.

"I- I don't know." He managed. "It's just- it's Yuzu, and, and, and we saw this coming and everything but I never really thought-" His voice cut off, overwhelmed with emotion.

"You never think it will happen." Rukia said solemnly. "How would we live our lives if we did?"

"Y-yes," Ichigo mumbled.

"I know how you feel." She said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Do you?"

"I once lost somebody very precious to me, too." She said, looking him in the eyes. "So yes. I do. And here's something I want you to remember: the pain isn't going to go away. It will always be there, like a hole in your chest. But eventually, it gets better. Less painful. We never forget those we lost, but as time goes by, it won't hurt the way it hurts now."

"Her- her spirit is still here." Ichigo said shakily. "What do I do? _What do I do?_"

"You know what you need to do. And unlike almost all people grieving on this earth, you actually know there is an afterlife."

"But will it be any good?" Ichigo said, slumping down on the floor, resting his back against the wall, his hands over his face.

"I couldn't say. The only thing that I can say for certain is that you will need to perform her konso as soon as possible, because otherwise, she will eventually become a hollow."

Ichigo raised his head, and gave Rukia of complete bewilderment. "Doing this... with her? I would never- I just- I can't just send her off like that! What if she loses her memory as she passes on? It- it would be just like losing her a second time... like I would be killing her! I- I can't do that!"

Rukia slowly shook her head. "You'll have no choice in that. The longer souls stay around in the world of the living, the more likely it is for them to eventually become hollows. For some it may take a few weeks, others might take many months, but ultimately, all souls that stay behind become hollows."

Ichigo lowered his head, covering his face with his hands again. "...I can't. Not now... please, give me some time..."

"I understand. But please Ichigo, keep in mind: You can't wait with this for too long. You know what will happen if you do."

Ichigo only nodded weakly in response, before slowly getting back up, keeping his head low.

"Better go to bed... will need some sleep..." He murmured, as he headed off to his own room, fully aware that he probably would not be able to fall asleep.

Rukia stayed where she was for another few minutes, watching after Ichigo, before she too headed towards her room.

In the end, Ichigo did somehow manage to fall asleep, though by the time that he woke up again, it felt like hadn't been asleep to begin with.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The world felt unreal to Ichigo. Days passed, and he still felt like he was in the wrong reality, like it couldn't possibly have happened- and knowing that it had made it all the harder. He coped, mostly by re-reading Shakespeare; nothing like olden English to distract you from reality.  
He had been given time off from school- as much as he needed, his principal had said. In all honesty, Ichigo didn't care- if he had been expelled for lack of attendance, it would have meant as much to him… nothing, really. Nothing seemed important any more.

It fell on him to make the funeral arrangements, as was customary. He sat in on the meetings he needed to with the funeral parlor- he barely remembered its name- listening to the different methods, the ceremonies offered, the costs for cremation and adding the name to their father's gravestone, where to hold the memorial service, what catering needed to be done… little details that seemed so insignificant, but which he knew needed to be done. He bit back the pain every day, focusing only on what he needed to do this particular day, sparing no thoughts for tomorrow. He had stopped crying after the first couple days; there was no use. Once he had regained a modicum of control of his emotions again, all he could do was try to distract himself.

And somehow, time passed. Only two weeks later- he could scarcely believe that a full two weeks had passed; it was as if it was only two days- his friends and family were gathered at the driveway of some Buddhist temple or other; it didn't matter which. His family was there, as were his friends. Some of his mother's friends, too. It was so strange, he felt, to see Keigo, usually so goofy, have the most solemn expression on his face. Tatsuki, always upbeat and spirited, hung her head. Sorrow had removed all of their outer skins, leaving only their solemn faces as they stood there in support of Ichigo.

And through all this, Yuzu's spirit would follow him, and each visit would tear at Ichigo like a knife twisted in an open wound. Ever since he had left her behind in the hospital room, Ichigo had tried his best to ignore his sister's spirit. Having to deal with her death was already hard enough by itself, but dealing with her spirit as well was just nearly impossible. He wanted to comfort her, tell her that everything would be alright, be there for her... and yet, Ichigo just couldn't get himself to even talk to her. He just could not build up the confidence, the courage to tell her that he could see her – how would she react? What would she say? The sheer uncertainty was too much.

But even so, Ichigo did see her expressions. Confused, sad, solemn, lost... but also accusing. Whenever Ichigo did look at her, she was giving him an accusing look... obviously, she still remembered that Ichigo had seen her in the hospital, and might suspect that Ichigo ignored her... but she never said a single word, and just silently followed him.

Even today, on the day of the funeral, Yuzu's spirit was still following Ichigo around. She saw all the people mourning her, watched them gather in one of the temple's room. An entire crowd, all dressed in black, sitting down behind a Buddhist priest who was performing a chant in front of the open coffin...  
This was reality. The harsh truth.

The service itself came and passed, the priest rabbling his words about peace, all that religious hogwash. Through the pain, it felt odd to Ichigo- he knew there was an afterlife, and he knew it was really nothing like what Shinto or Buddhism thought it was. It was such an alien feeling, and deep down he hoped that he really was the insane one, that all of this was some mad delusion. But if it was, he had no way of knowing- this was his reality, and there was no avoiding it.

Watching the priest say his prayers, Ichigo decided then and there that he would listen to no religion.

And after the service had passed, there was a solemn dinner. People would talk, in hushed voices, but talk they did- it felt strange how normal things could seem even on a funeral. Part of him felt angry that people dared speak at all, that they would talk about anything but Yuzu- but another part of him reminded him that humans dealt with sorrow in different ways, and sometimes the trivial parts of everyday life were a better coping mechanism than anything else. Or something; it stood to reason.

Eventually, he realized people were looking to him. Why?

"Ichigo!" Tatsuki said under her breath. "Aren't you going to say something? They're all waiting for you to start."

Speeches. Right. There would be speeches, that made sense. Part of the process, and all.

"I didn't prepare anything…" he mumbled.

"So speak from your heart! Nobody is going to care if you stutter or ramble here."

"Yeah…" he mumbled, getting up. "I guess you're right." Slowly, he got up on the floor, standing there with all eyes on him.

"Yuzu…" he began, swallowing, trying to keep his emotions in check. "Yuzu was…" How did he begin? How could he possibly put into words how he felt about his little sister? No words would ever be enough, not if he had a thousand years.  
But still, words needed to be said. He stood quiet for a while, then,

"Yuzu was the sweetest little sister anyone ever had." He said quietly. "She- she was always cheerful, even to the end." Putting a hand to his face, he tried to stop himself from crying. His shoulder began to tremble. "Fuck it. I'm trying to put something nice to say about her, here on the spot- but nothing's enough. There's nothing I can say that could describe how much we all loved her. She was bright and sweet and funny and always looked out for all of us, and…" he went quiet for a bit, wiping a tear, "and I just… nothing could replace her. I will miss her all the time. I just…" This time, he nearly sunk to his knees, tears streaming down his face. He found himself held up by Tatsuki, who had taken him by the arm.

"It's okay." She said. "Keep talking. Or just stop, and come have a seat. Just- just do what you want."

"No, it's fine." Ichigo said, shaking his head. Nothing was fine, but it was the sort of thing you said. "I…" suddenly, he turned to Yuzu's ghost, which was still hovering there, looking distraught. "Yuzu, I love you." His voice trembled. "I love you and I wish you could come back, but you can't and… oh god, I hurt."

"That's fine." Tatsuki said quietly, gently leading Ichigo back to his table.

For a moment, Masaki just looked around at everybody sitting at the table, seemingly even fixing her look at Yuzu's spirit for a few seconds. When she finally did speak, her voice was very quiet, almost enough to be nothing more than a faint whisper, though even so, nobody had any problems understanding her. "No parent should be burying their child. Yuzu's health has never been the best... we always feared that this day would come, that she would join her father who left us thirteen years ago... but fearing that something would happen, and actually experiencing it are two entirely different things. We thank you all for your sympathy, and the condolence money that some of you have given us. The money will help us pay for the ceremony and the burial..." She let out a sob, and slowly, tears started rolling down her face. "I hope that wherever Yuzu ends up now, that she will be reunited with her father... thank you all."

She sat down again.

After this point, things became a blur of sorts to Ichigo once more... paying Yuzu's lifeless body some last respects by giving her flowers. The closing of the coffin. The cremation. The ashes being placed in an urn, which in turn was placed in what now would become a family grave on the Karakura graveyard. Everything just blended together for Ichigo into a personal kind of torture, all while the tears that he thought he could no longer cry came forth.

And Yuzu's spirit still watched.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Afterwards, after the speeches had been said, and relatives and friends began their little conversations in between one another about how sad it was, terrible shame really, Ichigo just walked out. Tatsuki had looked like she would stop him, but didn't- he needed some time to himself, and she knew it.

So he wandered aimlessly about town for hours, his mind overflowing with thoughts and memories. He didn't notice where he walked, where his legs took him; it was all an unconscious process. Reality was somewhere else, some distant, strange place outside of his mind.

And slowly, as he walked, he began to finally process it: Yuzu had died. She wasn't coming back; she was a ghost and somebody had to pass her on to the afterlife. And it hadn't been anybody's fault, only a cruel whim of nature. It would have been so easy if it had been because of a hollow attack; then he could curse and swear at Rukia, at all shinigami, at all matters spiritual- but it was disease, in the end. A rotten, unstoppable disease.

Eventually and somehow, his feet took him home. The sun was going down, and twilight was setting in- had he really been walking for this long? Apparently, he had. Quietly, he unlocked the door, walked in and up to his room. His mother and Karin were home, he could tell. He probably should have called- well, never mind that. He was here now, and not in any mood to talk to anybody. He closed the door to his room behind him.

"Onii-chan!"

Slowly, Ichigo turned his head, shooting his dead sister a weary look. She looked so cheerful, so painfully alive for a ghost.

"I'm home," he mumbled.

"You haven't talked to me all week." She chided. "Are you angry with me for dying? I know you can see me."

"No, no!" He said quickly, sitting down on the bed, right next to her. "I… I didn't know what to say. You're um, you're gone, and," He choked up.

Gently, Yuzu put an arm on his shoulder. "I'm still here, onii-chan."

"You don't understand." Ichigo said, fighting back the tears. "You need to move on- to the other side, you know?"

"But all of you are still here." Yuzu said, sounding like she didn't quite understand. "You cared about me so much, even when I got sick- I couldn't just leave you here."

So that was why. It wasn't bitterness or resentment that kept her from moving on, like most spirits, but loyalty. Love. It was so painfully ironic he might have laughed.

Slowly, he hugged Yuzu close. "I know, Yuzu," he mumbled, "but… you can't stay."

"I'll stay just for a little while." She insisted.

"You see that chain on your chest?"

"Oh yes, that," Yuzu said, tugging at it lightly, "it's kind of heavy, but it isn't so bad."

"Don't touch it." Ichigo shook his head. "Yuzu, that chain…" He shook his head; how could he tell her?

"What about it?"

"Nothing. Everything is going to be fine, Yuzu..." He said after a moment of hesitation.

"Huh... and I thought you knew something about this..." She said, sounding disappointed. "I already asked mother and Karin about it, but neither of them knew anything about this chain, either..."

Ichigo blinked. Did he just hear correctly? "The- they can see you, too?"

"Of course they can! You're all my family, so it should only be natural that you can see me, shouldn't it?" Yuzu asked, giving Ichigo a confused look.

"Y-Yeah, that's gotta be it. I was just confused since they never said anything about being able to see you, that's all." Ichigo stuttered, trying to come up with an excuse on the spot. Yuzu mentioning that she had talked their mother and Karin had surprised him a good bit; never in his entire life had the two said or done anything that would have suggested that they, like him, were able to see spirits – especially not with how opposed his mother seemed to be everything that was even slightly supernatural.

Just what the hell was going on with this? That Karin would do the same thing as Ichigo, and keep this bothersome ability for herself was not too surprising... but why mother? Why, when she had once scolded him for even mentioning that he had seen ghosts?

It really began to seem like there was more to his mother's distaste of the supernatural than Ichigo had originally thought.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"You have been talking to your sister's spirit, haven't you?" Rukia broke the silence.

It was the morning after the funeral, the first day in almost two weeks that Ichigo would be going to school. While he still was not exactly over his sister's death, the funeral being over and having talked to Yuzu had allowed him to stabilize himself enough for him to go on. Life went on, and he had to go back to school.

Him and Rukia had been quietly walking to school, when Rukia had suddenly spoken up.

"Yeah. What of it?"

"Ichigo," she began, speaking quietly, "I know you hurt. Trust me, I know. But you have to know that you can't hold on to her like this."

"I think we might be late for school." Ichigo said abruptly, walking faster.

"I'm serious about this!" Rukia snapped, hurrying after him. "You're the only one who can pass her on right now- and if you don't, you know what will eventually happen. The more you wait, the worse it will feel when you do it."

"I just can't, all right?" Ichigo shot back. "Not like this, not after I just…"

"After you lost her. And then you realize that maybe you didn't lose her entirely, that she's still there. It's comforting, but it's also selfish."

"Selfish?!"

"Yes, selfish! You're not keeping her here for her sake; you're doing it because you feel horrible! You're doing it because you can't deal with it! That's the definition of selfish! What do you want to do? Keep her around until the rest of your family has died as well? That's just naïve!"

"How dare you!" He growled.

"Face the truth already!" Rukia continued mercilessly. "You know what awaits her- a couple of months from now, that chain will be gone."

"I've heard enough."

"And when it is, she will turn. And she'll be strong, too- your own spiritual pressure fed her soul really well when she was alive. Is the ghost of your sister worth the lives of Karin and Masaki, and even those of people that are not involved in this?"

Giving her an evil glare, Ichigo stopped dead in his tracks. "What the _hell_ do you think you know, Rukia? You came into my life out of nowhere, and now you think you can tell me what to do with my family?"

"I'll ignore that one." Rukia said, though she was seething with rage inside. "We say dumb things when we hurt. But for her sake, for your family's sake, and for your own sake, you must give her a soul burial! It's either that, or purifying her by sword- which one would you rather do?"

"And then what? Sending her to some unknown afterlife, all alone? Where anyone could come for her? Where she might forget everything about her entire life, even her own name? Where I will never see her again?"

"She has reiatsu. That's a good start. And besides, thousands of souls pass on every day, without any choice as to whether they can stay behind, watching over the loved ones, or just move on. Do you think Yuzu deserves special treatment just because she is your sister? As a shinigami, you can't let personal attachments get to you!"

"'As a shinigami'?! Are you even listening to what you are saying right now?" Ichigo said. By now he was just as angry as Rukia, if not moreso. "You seem to be forgetting that I'm only a substitute, and if it weren't for you failing to kill a hollow, I wouldn't even be having this problem!"

"Yeah, and why did I fail to kill that hollow? Because a certain _idiot_ charged in recklessly, and I had to protect him! I gave up any chances of defeating that thing for you! If I had any choice in this, I never would've given my powers up! You stubborn idiot, people could get hurt and you're just-"

She never finished that sentence. Ichigo walked up to her, slapped her across the face, and stormed off without another word. Shocked, Rukia looked after him, her own anger evaporating.

Had she... gone too far? By now she knew perfectly well how much Ichigo's sisters meant to him... asking him to perform a soul burial on the sister that he had just lost, sending her to an afterlife that he knew nothing about was to him probably only little better than killing her...

But even so, he had to understand what Rukia meant! The longer Yuzu stayed around, the more sorrow it would mean for Ichigo and his family when they had to let go of her for good. She had to remind him off this.

...Though she had probably been a bit too harsh. He was just a kid, a young man hurting in a way he had never hurt before.

Rukia sighed. Even though she hardly considered herself to be at fault here, and was not exactly happy about Ichigo having slapped her, she figured that an apology would still be in order. Hoping that Ichigo hadn't gotten too mad, she hurried after him.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was lunch break, and Uryu was enjoying a simple meal of rice balls and dried fish on the rooftop. He was alone as always; it was the way he had always liked it.  
It came as something of a surprise, then, when Kurosaki walked up to him, sitting down across of him. What was it this time? They hadn't spoken since last; he had heard his sister had died- apparently she had been ill for quite some time. He'd felt sympathy for him for the first time- but it wasn't like they were friends, and Kurosaki had no reason to think of him as anything but a bully. So why was he here? Eating quietly, Uryu decided to let Kurosaki speak up first.

Which, as it turned out, took quite some time. After he had finished his meal at last, Ishida broke the silence.

"Did you want something?"

"You're really good at this white knight shtick, you know that?"

"If you came here for a-"

"You got like half a dozen girls admiring you from afar, you know that? You know how to look cool." Ichigo shrugged. "You really are better at the hero stuff."

A little flustered at the prospect of being admired by girls his own age, Uryu tried to find a response,  
"What- what did you come here for?"

"I wanted to tell you that you can… you can have Karakura. I'm out." He made a sound that could perhaps have been mistaken for a laugh, if it hadn't been so hoarse and joyless. "In the end, if you had just waited two more weeks, you wouldn't even have had to fight me."

"…you're giving up?"

"I'm leaving it to somebody better qualified." Ichigo said flatly. "It really was like some kind of hero fantasy, running around with a sword, saving people… but I realized what really matters now. I'm not going to keep doing this."

"You're just going to leave it as it is? This is not like you at all." Uryu said, his tone puzzled. "Not that I know you well, but that's not the Kurosaki who kicked me half unconscious in the graveyard."

"No." Ichigo said. "No, it's not."

He stood up. "I'm out. That's all I wanted to say. Disapprove or approve, I don't care." He turned around, and began walking away.

"Hey, wait!" Uryu said, getting to his feet. "What happened to saving those souls, then?"

"Let the real shinigami do it. The dead should take care of the dead, and not involve the living into their business as well." Ichigo said apathetically, walking down the stairs, leaving Uryu to stare after him incredulously.

Just what the hell had gotten into Kurosaki? Uryu knew that the death of a loved one could have quite an impact on a person, but that alone couldn't be the reason as to why he had quit. It had already been several days since their fight – if his sister's death had affected him enough for him to quit, then he would have already made it clear days ago. What was going on?

For a moment, Uryu considered just going after Kurosaki, and outright asking him, but ultimately decided not to. He simply wasn't the kind of person that pried into other people's business, and if Kurosaki's behaviour just now was any indication, he wouldn't tell him, anyway.

Slowly, Uryu got up. Lunch break was going to be over in a couple of minutes, and it was about time to head back to class.

But even so, Kurosaki's withdrawal had given him something to think about it.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Just as Uryu had suspected, even hours after school had ended for today, he was unable to get his 'meeting' with Kurosaki out of his head. Luckily, this provided little problems when he was out to hunt hollows, with every beast that he came across being far too weak to pose any real threat to him, let alone catch his attention somehow.

After slaying the third hollow of today's patrol, something else did catch his attention: A being with a notable reiatsu approaching him. Fast, close to Kurosaki's own reiatsu in strength, most likely a shinigami, and... familiar?

Uryu raised his bow, and readied himself to shoot. He wasn't exactly certain as to where he knew this reiatsu from, and while there was a certain chance that whoever the person was that was approaching him now wasn't hostile, he preferred being cautious. He was standing on a rooftop, from which he a good view of the surrounding houses, and sure enough- not too far away from him, he could see a person in a black uniform approaching him rather quickly.

About another minute later, the person had made his or her way to Uryu's rooftop, where she – because from the looks of it, the person in question was a girl – looked around hectically, without noticing Uryu.

"Damn that Urahara..." She grumbled. "Telling me to fight one of these masked monsters for some practical experience, and there's isn't even one where it is supposed to be..."

Uryu raised his eyebrows. He knew that voice... "Arisawa-san?"

She quickly turned around, eyebrows going into a frown. "Ishinsuke-kun? What are you doing here- wait, how can you even see me?!"

"It's Ishida." He corrected her dryly, readjusting his glasses. "If you came here looking for a hollow, I probably already disposed of it."

Tatsuki blinked a few times, and gave him a look that was essentially confusion incarnate. "Whaaat?"

"I'm a Quincy." He said flatly. "Human beings with spiritual powers, which allow us to fight and slay hollows, destroying their souls in the process – unlike the shinigami, which purify souls."

"Uhh... oh." She got out after a moment of disbelieving staring.

"You know, I have felt for a while now that your reiatsu has grown considerably over the recent time, but I thought that this was the result of Kurosaki being unable to contain his own power... " He said, giving her a scrutinizing look. "This is really quite surprising... it is one thing to come across a human being that has been turned into a substitute shinigami like Kurosaki... exceedingly rare, but not unheard of. You however, are another case entirely. A living person that is also a fully-fledged shinigami is something that I have never even heard of."

"Wait, you know Ichigo? You've seen him before, doing all of this… stuff?"

"Yes, you could say that." He nodded. "But that is beside the point here. How is it that you, a girl of nineteen, has not only reiatsu like this, but even outright shinigami powers?"

"None of your business." She said shortly. "More importantly, what do you know about Ichigo? He's the one who got me doing this in the first place."

"Kurosaki asked you to get involved in this?" Uryu asked in an unconvinced tone. Had Kurosaki somehow set her up as successor, or what?

"…not really." Tatsuki scratched her head. "I saw him once, back when a hollow attacked Orihime… and then I met a shady store owner, and now I'm here. So, how is that you know about Ichigo doing these things?"

Ishida frowned. Orihime... that probably was Inoue-san, another one of Ichigo's friends. But who was this 'store owner'? "How I know about Kurosaki is barely relevant at this point... he informed me today that he will be leaving Karakura entirely to me. And you, I suppose."

"Oh, no…" Tatsuki said quietly. "It's Yuzu… it really must have hit him hard, then."

"His sister, yes... at first I thought that this is the reason for him quitting, too, but I think that there might be something else involved in this. I barely know Kurosaki, but based on my encounters with him, I don't think that he's a person that would quit over just that." Uryu didn't quite know why he was talking with Arisawa about this, especially when the fact that she had powers was a more pressing matter, but... hell, there could hardly be any harm in getting this off his mind.

"Nah..." She said solemnly. "I think this is about Yuzu, alright... I was there at the funeral. His sister's spirit was there, watching the entire thing. He was trying to ignore her for whatever reason, but still kept looking at her. Yuzu meant a lot to him, and with her spirit staying around... I think it's no wonder that he's depressed enough to quit."

"Of course... when the spirit of his sister didn't move on, then it falls onto him to perform a soul burial for her to allow her to pass on... no wonder that he'd try to quit now. But he can't leave, though." Ishida shook his head. "Once you enter this world, there is no way out. His days as a human ended when that shinigami gave him powers." He looked at Tatsuki, sizing her up. "But unlike you, he didn't knowingly throw his humanity away. Why did you do it? Was power so important to you? Were you deceived?"

"I know what it means!" Tatsuki snapped. "And if it means Orihime will be safe, it's worth it. Besides, it isn't so bad."

"Well, at least you aren't with the Gotei Thirteen." Uryu shrugged. "Goodbye, Arisawa-san. Good luck hunting." With that, he turned around, disappearing in a flash, leaving a befuddled Tatsuki behind.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Yuzu was confused. On some level, it had settled in that she had become…different. She couldn't really eat or sleep, and most people couldn't even see her. On the bright side, she could fly, and she didn't feel sick any more. She could walk- well, float- around the house as she pleased. She had tried to do the dishes, as she had before she had gotten sick, only to find out that she could barely even lift a table knife. It was great, being able to be with her family again, but what was the use if she couldn't help?

And so it was that she sat in her old room, moping. Why couldn't it be like before? Why did she have to… die?  
Death hadn't been so bad, but seeing all the people that cried for her had been. Seeing Ichigo cry openly, that was just really weird- he never cried.

The door opened, and her mother came in.

"Kaa-chan!" She exclaimed cheerfully, at once forgetting her worries. "Are you feeling better today?"

"Don't you worry about me." Masaki said. "We'll be fine, all of us. You too."

"But I _am_ fine!" Yuzu insisted spiritedly. "I feel better than I have in years!"

"I know." Masaki said, sitting down on her bed. "But…" She hung her head.

"Don't cry, kaa-chan." Yuzu said, hugging her.

"No, it's fine." Masaki said. "Listen, Yuzu… you know that you're not supposed to… be here, right?"

"…you don't want me here?" Yuzu said, her voice trembling.

"I want you here more than anything, Yuzu," her mother said, her voice almost overcome with emotion, "but you can't stay forever." She shook her head. "If only your father was here… he'd know what to do."

"It will be fine, kaa-chan." Yuzu said. "I'll stay here with you just a little while, to make sure you feel okay. After that, we'll see."

"Stay as long as you need." Masaki mumbled, unable to think of any other response.

Good god, what a mess this was…

* * *

oOo

* * *

Ichigo's mood was, in every sense of the word, terrible.

His conversation with Rukia this morning had hit a sore spot, and had left him, in addition to being quite pissed off, also rather thoughtful. Even though multiple times throughout the day, Rukia had tried to get his attention for whatever reason, he just flat-out ignored her each time. After everything that she had said, he simply wanted to be left alone by her – not only because he was mad at her, but also that he could think.

By the time that he had told Ishida that he'd quit, his decision was clear to him. Moving out of the entire shinigami business probably really was for the best; helping the spirits of the dead and slaying monster had been an unusual kind of fun for a while, but now that his only own family was directly involved in this, the fun was gone, and Ichigo realized that this world was something that he never should have gotten involved in in the first place. He, as a living person, simply shouldn't be responsible for taking care of the dead... especially not when his own sister was one of the dead.

When Ichigo had gotten home earlier today, he hadn't stayed for long. He simply needed to be away from home. Away from Karin, who never told him that she could see spirits, too, leaving him to believe that he was insane. Away from his mother, who was becoming a mystery to him. Away from his Yuzu's spirit, who was giving him more reasons to grieve than he should.  
And away from Rukia, who had pissed him off more than she had ever done before.

For hours now, Ichigo had been walking around aimlessly through the streets of Karakura town, like he had done so often since Yuzu's death. He had been in the area of the hospital, the school, the graveyard... wherever his feet took him.

Suddenly, a loud, obnoxious laughter interrupted his brooding.

Ichigo looked up. Without realizing it, his steps had led him into one of the more shady parts of Karakura town, the kind of place where thugs were far from a rarity. In fact, not too far of him, there were a few of these punks standing around... five guys, all around his age. Didn't one of them look familiar, too? Yeah, Ichigo definitely remembered seeing this guy before... Yokochini, or something like that. Ichigo already had a run-in with that guy a few years ago, when that guy and his friends attacked Chad, a long time before he died...

"We-eell, lookie who we got here!" Yokochini said, grinning what he probably thought was a sharkish grin. "If it ain't our old pal Kurosaki- long time no see!" He and his cronies chuckled, walking up and slowly surrounding Ichigo. Ichigo knew the routine; it was the exact same all petty criminals who got off on beating up people one to five did. A bit of mockery, leading up to an all-out assault.

"Yokochini." Ichigo said, his voice flat.

"Whatsa matter, pal? So cold, even though it's been at least a year?" He grinned, spinning around a butterfly knife.

"I'm going to say this once." Ichigo said, looking him in the eye. "Right now, I'm in a really bad mood. And I mean _really_ bad. So if you walk away right now, I won't break your arms and legs."

Yokochini laughed, heartily and long. "You're a real comedian, Kurosaki! That's priceless- if you keep on being that funny, you might even end up in one piece when we're through."

"Hey man, I heard he lost his sister." One of the thugs murmured. "Maybe- maybe we should leave it be."

"Shaddap!" Yokochini snarled. "I owe ya a debt of pain, Kurosaki, and since you decided to walk right into our arms, I figured now's as good a time as any to repay ya." He flicked out the knife's blade. A cold, mirthless smile spread across Ichigo's face.

"So where do we begin, Ichi-chan?" Yokochini said, gesturing with his knife. "Cuttin' off your fingers? Maybe your toes? I know- your balls-"

Ichigo launched himself forward, slamming his forehead into Yokochini's nose, and he felt a gratifying crunch as it connected. A real fighter, a yakuza or a gangbanger, might have been ready to stab him then and there- but Yokochini was a petty thug, and hadn't expected to use the knife as more than a torture device. Shocked, he staggered backwards, dropping the knife.

Before they had time to react, Ichigo turned around, slamming his fist into the throat of the nearest thug. The man gave out a wheeze, and sank to the ground gasping for air. Two of them threw themselves at Ichigo, trying to weigh him down, knock him over- but Ichigo had fought like this before, and after the fights he had had these last few weeks, these punks were nothing. The first one got a knee in the groin for his troubles, and the other got a thumb jammed into his eye.

Brutally and expertly, Ichigo beat them down one by one. One had taken up a pipe, trying to beat him across the head- Ichigo caught his arm, and snapped it like a twig. It felt good feeling it snap, and it felt good watching the thug fall to the ground, whining in pain. Ichigo kicked him for good measure.  
And finally, there was only Yokochini still standing.

"H-hey, wait!" The gang leader said, waving his hands in submission. "We was just foolin' around, no harm-"

Ichigo didn't listen. He slammed his fist into Yokochini's jaw, sending the thug backwards once again.

"Please!"

He hit him again. And again. And again. His head hurt, his fists hurt, his body ached; but he could barely even feel it. It was as if the pain was some mild, secondary sensation, easily put aside. So he hit and hit and hit, over and over. Yokochini was squirming on the ground, but it didn't matter. He couldn't run from Ichigo any more than he could run from death or taxation. Blood splattered across Ichigo's face, staining his fists- and it was not his own.

And then suddenly, as he raised his fist for one final really hard hit- a small part of his mind was screaming, _stop, you'll kill him, don't do it_- his hand was caught, held firm by somebody stronger. He turned to look.

"Hat and clogs."

"The very same." Urahara said solemnly. "This is no time for a student to be out, Kurosaki-san. You should be in bed."

"What are you doing here?" Ichigo spat, in no mood for games.

"Stopping you from doing something you will regret."

"This is none of your business!"

"I _made_ it my business." Urahara said firmly. "And I suggest you take a deep breath, count to ten, and ask yourself what it is you think you're doing."

"Just leave me alone, you stalking bastard!" Ichigo shouted, giving him a fierce glare.

"A bastard? I won't deny that, but at the very least, I'm not a petty murderer. I need you to come to your senses, Ichigo."

A murderer? What was he talking about? Ichigo didn't... wait.

He looked down on Yokochini. The guy's face had become a bloody mess. His nose was broken, several of his teeth were missing, he had a black eye, and his glasses were lying next to him on the floor, shattered into countless pieces. He was still breathing weakly, but had long since lost his consciousness under Ichigo's assault.

Ichigo backed away, walking blindly backwards, until he hit a wall where he collapsed. _No, no, no..._

"You really should be quite glad that I decided to follow you around for this evening. I am pretty sure that you can imagine what would have happened if you had continued what you have just done." Urahara stated matter-of-factly as the realization of just what the hell he had been doing struck Ichigo. "You can't just keep on sulking for the rest of your days, Ichigo, and much less vent all of your pent-up frustration on other people. Grief can certainly make us do some unusual things, but if the death of your sister has hit you so hard, then why don't you go ahead and commit suicide? You'd be relieved of all your problems, and would be together with your sister again – sure, you'd leave behind your mother, your other sister, all of your friends, the entire existence that you've build yourself up in your nineteen years on this world, but you'd be able to move on together with your sister, and maybe, through a stroke of luck, even enter the afterlife together with her. It all really boils down to a single question: What is more important to you, Ichigo? The living, or the dead?"

Ichigo turned his head towards Urahara. The shopkeeper was keeping a calm expression, but he was also giving Ichigo a calculating and questioning look. "W-What the hell do you know?" He shot back. He had intended to sound confident, maybe even intimidating, but had failed at spectacularly, his tone instead being filled with nothing more than guilt and unrest.

"A good question... what do I know? The answer is quite simply: More than you think." Urahara said... empathetically? "You are not the first person to have lost one of their loved ones, and you are far from being the last one, Ichigo. If everybody who ever lost somebody were to stop like you, humanity would surely be doomed. Grief is natural, it is necessary – but you cannot get consumed by it. Life simply isn't something where you can just stop keep moving forward, just because you grieve. It is quite like a conveyor belt, in fact: Whether you want it or not, it goes on. Now get up, and keep moving forward! After all, you have two perfectly functional legs, don't you?"

With that, he left, walking into the night. Ichigo felt at once relieved that he had been there, angry that he had interfered, and sickened that he had almost killed a man- though it was a pretty rotten man.

He had been right in some ways, though. He had to move on at some point, and this… screaming at Rukia, beating punks up half dead, that wasn't the way. Some day, he would have to send Yuzu on her way to the afterlife.

Just not yet.


	10. So long, and thanks for all the fun

**Author's Notes:**  
Damn. . . hard to believe that this is already at chapter 10. Everything sure is coming along quicker than I thought, huh.

* * *

Orihime stared at the cat sitting in front of her, torn between listening to its instructions on how to awaken her spiritual power, and the desire to absolutely cuddle the little furball.

Not too long after Tatsuki had promised her to find a way to help her fight evil spirits, she had introduced Orihime to the shopkeeper Urahara Kisuke and his subordinates. Said subordinates included, among others, the cat Yoruichi- who, after some introductions and some arguing, had ultimately decided to help Orihime develop some powers of her own. Unlike Tatsuki, though, who had shinigami powers, Orihime would be getting some other kind of other power- called 'Fullthing' or 'Failbring', or something like that.

So for the past few weeks, Orihime had been training together with Yoruichi, the two of them occasionally being joined by Tatsuki and Urahara, who would do little more than watch them during their training. Calling what Orihime was doing under Yoruichi's supervision 'training' really was a bit of a stretch, though; most of said 'training' consisted mostly of Orihime trying to feel some weird stuff, and, after somehow succeeding in that, putting that stuff into things to use them as power stuff.

Even though Orihime herself was not really noticing much, according to Yoruichi, she was making some progress, though it was no progress that Orihime could actually visualize. All of this was not exactly helped by the fact that to Orihime, Yoruichi was absolutely adorable, which did cause a few problems when she was trying to listen Yoruichi's instructions, while keeping herself from just stroking the cat.

"Hey, are you even listening right now?" Yoruichi demanded in an annoyed tone.

"…soft." Orihime mumbled, stretching out a hand, rubbing Yoruichi's back. Tatsuki, who had been watching them after a harsh training session, sighed. Orihime was gifted, she didn't doubt that, but there were times when she wouldn't blame people for thinking she was 'special'.

"Oh, for pity's sake." The cat grumbled. "Can you really not concentrate when I am like this?"

"Sorry, Yoruichi-san!" Orihime exclaimed, quickly retracting her hand. "I just- you look so cute and cuddly."

The cat gave a long, deep sigh. "There's no helping it, I suppose." The cat began to glow, and somehow it expanded, taking on a diffuse shape, a radiant white… and then there was a flash, some smoke, and where there two seconds ago had been a gruff black cat, a lean, dark-skinned, beautiful woman with purple hair sat cross-legged. Perfectly naked too, Tatsuki noticed.

"Huuuuh?" Orihime said, sounding baffled.

"Cats don't talk." The woman- Yoruichi- said, her voice much lighter, but not particularly softer. "That's just the form I prefer."

"Oh." Orihime said. "Oh yes, that makes perfect sense!" She smiled happily.

"No, it doesn't!" Tatsuki exclaimed. "Cats turning into women falls under the category of things that make very little sense! And put on some clothes, god damn it!" She didn't know why she was so flustered, but then again, seeing cats turn into women wasn't exactly an everyday occurrence.

"Look at you, all flushed." Yoruichi said smugly. "Who knew you were such a prude?" She grinned. "Calm yourself, baby shinigami. A couple of weeks ago you thought ghosts weren't real- with what you know now, is it so weird to think there is shapeshifting magic?" She turned back to Orihime. "Now, lessons…"

"You have very nice boobs." Orihime noted.

"…thank you." Yoruichi said, and gave a smile. "Do I need to put on clothes too?"

"Oh no, this is fine." Orihime said cheerfully. "Now that you're not small and cute anymore, I can totally focus."

"Good." Yoruichi said. "Now, focus on yourself. All we need from you for today is for you to produce just a spark of power."

"That should be easy." Orihime nodded. "So I just make this spark, and eventually I get the Bullfing no jutsu?"

"…we have a long way to go." Yoruichi said, almost grumbling.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"_Please_ open up, Ichigo! I want to talk to you!" Rukia said, while loudly knocking against the door to Ichigo's room. Unsurprisingly, no response came, and the door remained locked.

Rukia sighed. For days now, she had been trying to talk to Ichigo so that she could apologize to him, but he always just ignored her. When they were on their way to school, during class, during breaks, and even at home, he just kept ignoring her, as if she wasn't even there. And whenever he did have a choice, Ichigo just avoided her as if she were the plague – by locking himself into his room, for example.

Slowly, Rukia made her way back towards Yuzu's – no, her room. On her way there, she came across Karin, who gave her a curious look. "Man, you really must've pissed him off if he still won't talk to you... for how many days is this already going now? Three? Four? Just what did you do, anyway?"

"I... said a few things that I shouldn't have, that's all. I was actually hoping that he would be over it all by now..." Rukia answered after a short moment of hesitation. There could be little harm in telling Karin what had happened in uncertain terms, after all.

"Huh... and here I thought that Ichi-nii had found the love of his life in you. A shame that it's over... you really made a quite nice couple." Karin noted nonchalantly.

"I- we- he wasn't my boyfriend!" Rukia burst out, getting more flustered than she wanted to.

"Oh, you mean that he still is?"

"N-no! He isn't, and he never was to begin with!"

"Sure thing." Karin said, both her tone and her expression making it clear that she didn't believe a single word. "Well then, good luck with getting your totally-not-boyfriend, who just so happens to be my brother, to talk to you again."

And with that, she headed back to her room, leaving and entirely befuddled Rukia behind. After staring after her for another moment, Rukia finally opened the door to her room... where she found Yuzu sitting on her bed.

Rukia hesitated. She was aware that not only Ichigo, but apparently Masaki and Karin were able to see Yuzu's spirit, and had talked to her before, but so far, Rukia herself had not made it clear to Yuzu that she could see her as well. "Uh..."

"Hm? Can you see me, too, Kuchiki-san?" She asked curiously.

"Uh, yeah? I guess..."

"Wooow... and here I thought only my family could see me! This is awesome!" Yuzu said, displaying a happiness that Rukia rarely saw in spirits. "Ohh, I hope that you don't mind me being in your room, Kuchiki-san?"

Rukia wildly shook her head. "No, no! Not at all! If anything, then I should be asking you if you don't mind me staying here, since this was your room before you, well..."

Yuzu lowered her head a bit. "Before I died... well, since I'm dead, I don't really need a room anymore... this is your room now, Kuchiki-san. I don't want to stay for too long, anyway."

Rukia looked at the chain protruding from Yuzu's chest. It had already shortened a bit, but not by an alarming amount; it would probably still take a fairly long time before it would be gone entirely, but one day, it would be gone. Rukia really needed to get Ichigo to perform the soul burial as soon as possible... in the absolutely worst case, she might even have to ask Urahara to do it. Though, the possibility that she regained her powers before Yuzu got to that point was there, too...

"Say, Kuchiki-san..." Yuzu interrupted her thinking "How exactly do you feel about Ichigo?"

Luckily for Rukia, though, her denreishinki rang, before she could even begin to think of an answer. "Err, I'll answer that later, okay? I gotta take this!" And with that, Rukia stormed out of the room. Once she was out in the hallway, she took a deep breath. Ichigo's sister really seemed to like getting her worked up... but that was beside the point for now. Rukia didn't even know why she was still carrying the denreishinki around with her. Ever since Yuzu's death a few weeks ago, Ichigo hadn't been out to hunt hollows a single time, leaving Uryu to take care of the beasts instead. Thinking that the device was giving her the data on yet another hollow attack, Rukia pulled the denreishinki out of her pocket – only for it to display something that she had absolutely not expected.

* * *

oOo

* * *

She hurried down the street, far away from the Kurosaki place. How could she have missed this? What was going on? Huffing she jogged down the street. It was twilight; the sun was going down, but she couldn't have cared less.  
Then, just as she ran, she felt it. Overwhelming power, bearing down on her, like a flame blazing towards an insect. She looked up, and standing there in the sky they were. Two shinigami, people she knew- one had furiously red hair, his high hairline covered with big shades, and the second… her nii-sama. Standing there in his white _haori_, his long black hair held in check by the elaborate hair ornament, the kenseikan.

"Rukia." He said, slowly descending. "You are under arrest. For having violated Gotei law on several accounts, I am to take you into custody. Do you understand?"

"…yes." She managed.

The red-haired one, Renji, walked up to her. "Y'know, what really surprises me is how you actually hid from us. Did you try to run away, or what?"

"Hid?" Rukia said, sounding confused. "I've been trying to contact you for weeks! I even asked that shady business owner to get a message through!"

"Pull the other one, it's got bells on." Renji scoffed.

Quickly, she turned to the other man. "Nii-sama, please believe me! I haven't hid or tried to run- I know I'm not a great shinigami, but have I ever lied to you? Have I ever tried to run away?"

"It has been noted and will be investigated." He said dispassionately. He stretched out his arm. "Now, come with us. We will talk more when we are in-"

And then he was cut off by a shining arrow, shooting right in between his hand and Rukia.

"Two men, accosting a girl after dark?" Rukia could see him from afar, adjusting his glasses. What the hell was he doing? "You two make quite the villains."

"Renji." Her brother said, not even taking his eyes off her.

"Got it." Renji stepped up, unsheathing his zanpakutou. "You're in for a world of hurt, boy."

"Get out of here, Uryu! There's no need for you to do this!" Rukia quickly interjected, before the two could clash.

"Huh? Who says that I'm doing this for you?" Uryu asked calmly, raising his bow to fire another shot. "I was just on my daily patrol when I sensed two shinigami showing their faces in this town... call it Quincy instinct, but I simply cannot help but to attack shinigami when I come across them. That I'm helping you with this is nothing but a mere coincidence, Kuchiki Rukia."

Rukia stared at Uryu in disbelief. He was lying – about most of it, anyway – and he wasn't even doing a good job at it. Why did he interfere?

"Whooa, a Quincy? You don't really see these guys much these days. What should I do, Kuchiki-taichou? Kill him?" Renji asked, his tone full of curiosity.

"Let him live. We do not have any orders pertaining Quincies. Our tasks are limited to arresting Rukia, and taking the powers of the human that took hers."

Renji grinned, and got into a fighting pose. "Understood, captain."

Before Renji could however even do as much as begin to charge at Uryu, the Quincy had already shot multiple arrows at him, moving erratically around while doing so. In her powerless state, Rukia couldn't even follow his movements with her eyes – all she could do was hope that nothing bad would happen.

Renji leapt forward, moving smoothly and with determination, narrowly dodging Uryu's shots. He unsheathed his blade, leaping at Uryu, slashing down swiftly in a downward arc-

And suddenly, Uryu wasn't there anymore, standing on a lamppost ten yards away.

"Huh?" Renji grunted. "That- was that _shunpo_, human?"

"You should consider more your imminent doom, shinigami." Uryu said, trying to sound intimidating as he unleashed a quick volley of shots. This was bad- not only was the shinigami's reiatsu greater than his own by a significant margin, but he moved with the ease of a veteran. It was like observing his grandfather in combat- completely confident, each move practiced a thousand times for use in combat, tempered by experience. He had one advantage, though… the shinigami was under instructions not to kill him, but he himself had no such reason to hold back. Charging a shot, he aimed and quickly jumped back to the next lamppost, firing mid-air.

Renji simply cut the arrow, dashing through the air. "You're a decent workout, for a human." He said cockily, raising his sword up on high. "Now hold still!"

Uryu scowled, and charged a shot with a heavy amount of reiatsu. This had better work…

And just as Renji closed the distance, he used the _hirenkyaku_, moving in an instant behind Renji, hitting him almost point blank. The shinigami staggered; blood poured out from his shikausho…

"Well fuck me, that actually hurt a little." Renji said, sounding surprised more than anything.

"Renji." Byakuya said. There was a slight change in tone, Uryu noticed- a hint of impatience.

"Got it." Renji turned. Instantly, Uryu moved away- and just as instantly, Renji followed his own movements even faster. "Now _this_ is shunpo, boy!" He cheered, bringing down his sword. Uryu gasped; he had never been cut like this before. From his shoulder down his side, the sword had cut, disabling his firing arm. Just barely, he managed to outrun the shinigami, stopping not far from the enigmatic man in the haori.

"Damn… it…" Uryu swore.

"Tell ya what, kid," Renji said, resting his sword against his shoulder, "if ya give up now, I'll let ya go. I'll even admit you did a good job dodging my attack."

"What kind of man would leave a woman in need?" Uryu snapped. It was cliché, he knew it, but it was the best he could manage.  
More importantly, why was he even doing this? Why was he fighting a battle he couldn't win, for a girl he barely even knew? Was he this stubborn? Suddenly he remembered Kurosaki, who had faced him so very similarly, despite no odds of winning.

"Suit yourself." Renji said. "I'll end this quick, then." He held up his sword, running a hand down the dull side of the blade. "Howl, Zabimaru!"

Almost instantly, his reiatsu increased tremendously. His sword eolgated and widened, its bladed side now carrying a row of nasty-looking spikes, the head of it having two spikes pointing in either direction. It looked like a weapon made to maim, to slaughter… Uryu sighed; this would really hurt. Already weakened from his injuries, he was getting close to the point from collapsing under the pressure of the man's power alone. Just why had he gotten himself into this?

But it was too late for such thoughts. Mustering all the strength that he had left, Uryu stood up straight, and readied himself for one final attack. "If you think... that this _trickery_... is enough to overcome a Quincy's determination, then you are sorely mistaken, _shinigami_!"

Renji sighed. "Don't say I didn't warn you, man."

A grim expression on his face, Uryu fired several more arrows, Renji beginning to charge at him at high speed-

"What the hell is going on here?" The voice came suddenly, from a point not too far behind Renji, who stopped dead in his tracks and looked around confused. Uryu tensed even further; he knew that voice well enough. And sure enough; only a short moment later, Kurosaki approached them in his human body.

"Stand back, Kurosaki! Against these foes you stand even less of a chance than I do!" Uryu shouted.

Ichigo kept walking unperturbed, until he stood right in front of the man in the haori, who kept the same apathetic expression that he had been bearing all along. "Whoever said that I was going to fight them, Ishida? Unless I'm completely mistaken, these two are here to do something that I've been waiting for months now."

Uryu stared bewilderedly at Ichigo, just like Rukia and Renji. "They... what?"

"Who are you, and why are you here?" Ichigo meanwhile asked the man in the haori, ignoring Uryu.

The man gave Ichigo a calculating look. "I am Kuchiki Byakuya, captain of the Gotei Thirteen's sixth squad, and the brother of Kuchiki Rukia. The task that I was given was to arrest her, and take away the powers of the substitute shinigami that she created. But who are you, to demand such information?"

"Substitute shinigami, huh..." Ichigo said quietly. "Well, that'd be me then, Kurosaki Ichigo."

Uryu's eyes grew wide. What had gotten into him? "Kurosaki, you idiot... why are you telling them this?!"

"Shut it, Ishida! That's none of your business!" Ichigo barked, keeping his eyes on Byakuya. "So, you want my powers? Go ahead. Take them. I never should've gotten them in the first place. The only reason why I got them to begin with was because I was being an idiot who thought that he needed to get involved in the affairs of the dead. For a while, it has been fun to protect the souls of the dead, and help them pass on, but that fun is long since over now. So, be my guest. Take my powers and give me a normal life again."

The man- Kuchiki Byakuya- looked at him, a hint of curiosity in his condescending gaze. For just a second, a rebellious part of him imagined fighting him- and was snuffed instantly. He could feel the Kuchiki's reiatsu, at least twice as oppressive as that of his subordinate, bearing down on him even with the restraint the captain carried himself with.

"Sensible, young man." Byakuya said, in an even tone. He slowly and gracefully pulled his sword out. "It will be noted that you were co-operative."

"Can I uh, just say a few words to Rukia?"

Byakuya frowned. "What business do you have with my sister?"

"Just a few words, please. I'm giving you these powers back willingly- so let me have this. Please."

"…do not tarry." The captain said, temporarily lowering his sword.

"So, Rukia…" He said, swallowing. He wasn't quite sure what to say to her now.

"I'm surprised you even found us."

"Could feel the reiatsu." He murmured. "Hard not to." He shook his head. "Anyways… I guess this is goodbye."

"Yes, I suppose it is. I'm going to be taking responsibility for my crimes, and… I don't think we'll see each other again."

"It's uh, it wasn't bad. Uh. Knowing you, I mean." He said, desperately trying to think of something meaningful. "And uh, sorry. For slapping you. You were right."

"Good bye, Kurosaki Ichigo." Rukia said coolly. "You performed adequately, but this is farewell." Deliberately, she turned around, facing away from Ichigo. Ichigo swallowed again, feeling like somehow he'd made a big mistake. Well, there was no fixing it now.

"So uh," he said, turning to Byakuya, "how do we do this-"

He didn't even see him move. One moment, Byakuya had been standing in front of him, the second he was standing beside him, sheathing his sword. Ichigo groaned, sinking to his knees. There was a small trickle of blood coming from his chest.

"You will not die." Byakuya said calmly. "I made a precision strike. You will not be able to access your powers any more. It has gone back where it belongs." With that, he walked towards Rukia, who was being flanked by Renji.

And suddenly, Ichigo felt like an anvil- two, three of them- had been dropped on his shoulders. The power was gone, the power that had always been there, tingling in him ever since that night. He had gotten so used to feeling its strength that its absence was a massive shock to him, like a slap in the face, amplified by perhaps a million. It wasn't painful per se, but so… odd.  
He turned his head just in time to see the three shinigami walk through a round, glowing gate. Rukia gave him a quick last look as she walked through it, then swiftly turned her head around. The gate closed shut, leaving the street as normal and ordinary as it ever had seemed.

He couldn't be sure, but- had he seen tears in Rukia's eyes as she left?

Like a sleepwalker just waking, he reached an arm out, towards the already closed portal.

"Rukia…" he said quietly... only to be receive a punch to the face, which knocked him over.

"What the HELL has gotten into you, Kurosaki?!" Uryu shouted. "First you quit over your sister's death, now you let Rukia go like that – what is wrong with you?!"

Slowly, Ichigo got back up. "I thought I told you, Ishida... this is none of your business. I was the one that had been turned into a substitute shinigami here, and that's over now. And honestly... I'm glad about it. It's just like I said earlier: This has been fun for a while, but now that Yuzu is dead, the fun is over." He slowly shook his head. "When this all began, Rukia told me that it is forbidden for shinigami to create substitutes... and I can see why now. The living shouldn't be meddling in the affairs of the dead, Ishida. In the end, all that me becoming a substitute shinigami has accomplished was wasting my time, and causing me more pain that it was ever worth. You really should quit this entire business, too... it's only a waste of time for living human being."

Uryu punched him once more. "So you're telling me that just after your sister died, you suddenly see the errors of your ways and do what's right? Don't make me laugh! All this time, you used your powers to protect those that are close to you from hollows, but the instant that you have to help your sister to move on, you're dodging your responsibilities, and let your grief get the better of you! Do you know why I 'meddle in the affairs of the dead', as you call it? I know that me alone fighting hollows makes little difference in the grand scheme of things, but it is something! When I can make a difference between just one soul that gets to pass on safely, and a soul that gets eaten by a hollow, then I'll gladly meddle in the affairs of the dead! I thought it was the same for you, Kurosaki!"

Ichigo stared at him uncertainly. "...so what? Even if I admit that you're right now, it makes no difference. I've lost my powers, and Rukia is going to be punished at the Soul Society. Neither you nor I can do anything about this, and neither should we."

For a moment, Uryu remained quiet. Then- "I was honestly expecting more of you, Kurosaki." And with that, he turned around and walked off into the night, leaving Ichigo where he was.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Two days later, things were somehow returning to normal, at least if he tried hard to feel like it did. He could still see ghosts, but now… they weren't his responsibility. He could focus on his studies again, maybe do something about his slowly declining grades. Summer was coming, soon there would be vacations galore- or summer break, for him. He could put this shinigami business behind him.

But still, Rukia was always on his mind, however much he tried to avoid it. He had told himself she had been nothing but trouble, that he should hate her, but that felt so much like a lie that no amount of wanting it to be true could convince him. Still, it was out of his hands. As he walked home, he found himself hoping she would be all right, that they'd let her off easy; maybe he should testify for her somehow-

No. That was over with. Her fate was hers, his fate was his, and they were no longer intertwined. Give it a week, and he'd stop thinking about it. His family and friends all believed that the foreign student Kuchiki Rukia had to abruptly return to her home country, so none of them mentioned her anymore, and it would only be a matter of time before Ichigo forgot her, too.  
Somehow.

"My, my," He knew that voice; he'd know it anywhere. That jovial, cheerful voice, sounding so effortlessly casual… "you're looking broody, Kurosaki-san."

"Hat-and-clogs." Ichigo grumbled. Indeed, it was he, Urahara, sitting on a fence. "What do you want?"

"I said I took an interest in you back then, Kurosaki-san," the store owner said, nimbly hopping off the fence, landing in front of him, "and that hasn't changed."

"Well, I don't have an interest in you. If you like young men, I think there's a gay bar three blocks down." Ichigo shot back.

"Comedy really isn't your strong suit, Kurosaki-san." Urahara said, smiling. "The time has come to do something about your power."

"Well, that's gone." Ichigo said, taking a step forward, past Urahara-

And then he sunk to his knees, letting out a gasp.

"Don't worry- that little spell only knocked the air out of you." Urahara said, raising his cane. "This might hurt a bit, though." The tip of the cane came down on the back of Ichigo's neck, and everything went black.

* * *

oOo

* * *

He woke up to find the sun shining in his eyes. As he opened his eyes, getting to his feet, he realized it wasn't the sun at all- it was the artificial light of Urahara's basement.

"Gnn…" Ichigo grunted. "What the fuck, Urahara?"

The man was nowhere in sight; his curse was wasted on the nearby rocks. What did he have in mind, taking him here? This was crazy…

"So you're awake."

Wait a second. That voice. That _voice_.

He turned around. "_Tatsuki_?"

"This way." She said, walking away from him, towards a more open part of the gigantic basement. Bewildered, Ichigo followed her. There was something incredibly wrong with this all, and it wasn't just the fact that Tatsuki was involved with Urahara somehow. No, there was something wrong with Tatsuki herself...

Like the fact that she was wearing a shihakusho, the same kind of shinigami uniform that Ichigo had been wearing whenever he had to play his role as substitute shinigami.  
...what the hell?

"Uh, Tatsuki? Why are you wearing that?"

"Just wait a moment; I'll explain that soon enough. Let's get to the others, first." She replied nonchalantly. Others? This all just kept on getting weirder...

A moment later, said 'others' turned out to be Orihime and the woman that he had seen the hollow Grand Fisher take the form of... except naked. They both sat on the floor, and seemed to be discussing something.  
...what?

Ichigo stopped dead in his tracks. "Ooh, I get it!"

Tatsuki stopped, too, turned around gave Ichigo a confused look. "Huh? You do?"

He nodded calmly. "Of course. It's quite simple, actually- I'm still asleep, and having the weirdest dream that I've had in ages. I mean, you being a shinigami, Orihime having a little talk with a woman that I've only seen once in my entire life – who is now naked, no less – can't get much weirder than that. Maybe if I'm lucky, then Urahara kidnapping me to begin with was also part of this dream..."

"No such luck, Kurosaki." Uryu's voice came from behind him. "You are awake, all right. If you want me to prove it, I could punch you again."

"Right." Ichigo sighed. "So if this all is real, would any of you mind telling me what the hell this all is about?!"

"Such impatience, Kurosaki-san! We were just about to get to that, believe me." Yet another voice – Urahara's – came from behind him. "Orihime-san, Yoruichi, could you please come over here? Our guest has awakened!"

As he called, Orihime and that woman- _still buck naked_- stopped their conversation, and walked over.

"What…" Ichigo managed. "What. The fuck."

"Yes, it's perfectly believable that _you_ get supernatural powers, but when your friends get them, it's _incredible_." Tatsuki said, sniggering.

"TatsukI!" Ichigo exclaimed. "When…"

"When you decided to be the big macho hero all on your own, never mind your friends. And right now, I'm actually better at it than you are, or so Urahara says." She almost sounded smug.

"Well, I'm not the big, macho hero anymore!" Ichigo sneered. "I'm out, and if that shady ass store owner could only realize that-" he pointed viciously at Urahara- "then I could maybe, just maybe get on with my life!"

"Can I punch him?" Tatsuki said, cracking her knuckles.

"In time." Urahara said, grinning. "Now, Ichigo-"

"Don't you 'Now, Ichigo' me!" He shouted. "You kidnapped me, took me here against my will- why would I listen to a word you say?"

"You lost somebody." Urahara said, holding his fan up over his face. "That always hurts a lot- and I know of your dilemma, too."

"That's out of my hands."

"You lost somebody," Urahara continued, unperturbed, "but you stand to lose much more if you don't listen."

"Like what?!"

"Rukia-san." He said simply, pulling out a small piece of paper, holding it out to Ichigo.

"What even is this?" Ichigo snatched the paper angrily.

"It's a copy of the sentence given to Kuchiki Rukia yesterday. Read it."

Quickly, Ichigo eyed through it. It was written in archaic Japanese, with lots of formal language…

"…execution? For this?"

"Execution."

"How do I know you didn't just make this up?"

"Skepticism, good- although I wish it was motivated by something better than animosity." Urahara said. "Believe what you will, but within the month, she will face a complete eradication of her being. Death, in a very final sense. Tell me, does she deserve to die?"

"What the hell-"

"Answer." Urahara snapped. "Does she deserve to die?"

"No!" Ichigo snapped back. "She is- she is- I mean, she…" he trailed off.

"A good start." Urahara nodded. "I'm not going to make one of those bad jokes, that she is your girlfriend- but she does matter to you. You're a loyal person, and she helped you save your family. You want her alive."

"Yeah, but… I mean, even if I assume this is true, that you're not lying to me-"

"Would I?"

"…do you really want me to answer that?" Ichigo said, almost incredulous. "Almost everything about you screams "ulterior motive"- you'd lie to me if it suited you."

"Maybe." Urahara said, flicking his fan closed, "but I usually only tweak the way a fact is perceived. And a cold hard fact is that she is going to die unless we do something."

"Prove it." Ichigo said, glaring at Urahara. "Prove it, hat and clogs. Give me just one reason to believe you!"

"Ahh, you got me there, Kurosaki Ichigo!" He pointed his closed fan at Ichigo and grinned. "I do indeed lack any proof that you would consider to be absolutely certain. But here's something else to consider: Your conscience. No one is forcing you stay here. If you wanted to, you could just walk out of my humble abode, and leave your friends here to start the rescue mission of Kuchiki-san by themselves. The question here, however, is: could you? Could you just leave, knowing that Kuchiki Rukia might be executed, and that you turned down a chance to save her life?"

Ichigo remained silent. As much as he hated to admit to himself, Urahara was right. It would be impossible for him to just leave now. Sure, telling himself that Urahara had been lying to pursue his own goals would be easy, but emotions simply aren't rational. Ichigo was certain, that before he could even set a single step outside of Urahara's shop, he'd be overtaken by feelings of guilt. But even so... just what the hell was this bastard planning?

"Ichigo." Tatsuki interrupted his thoughts. "Now look, I know that Yuzu's death has gotten to you more than I could ever imagine. I know that the fact that her spirit is still around is making this harder for you than anyone could ever imagine. But Rukia gave you this power so that you could help dead people, so that you can protect them. She gave you the power to protect your family. If you just completely stop because of Yuzu's death, and let Rukia die, too, aren't you just spitting on all the things that she has done for you? You have power, power to help people who are helpless, and the only one stopping you from using them is you! With shinigami powers comes the responsibility to help the dead, whether you like it or not. Damn it, you just _have_ to help Rukia, Ichigo!"

For a moment Ichigo stared bewilderedly at Tatsuki. Then... he laughed, loud, long, and joylessly. "Geez... you're the fourth person now to lecture me about this all. First Rukia, then hat and clogs, then Ishida, and now you... you'd think that I'd actually get it by now. Though... responsibility, power... you're kinda forgetting there that right now, I don't have any powers."

"And that is where I come in." Urahara interjected. "Thanks to Arisawa-san over there, I have been able to perfect my method of turning living human beings into shinigami... and not just substitute shinigami, but the real deal. Give me another few hours, and I'll be able to give you shinigami powers which are way stronger than the substitute ones that you had before. So, what do you say, Kurosaki Ichigo?"

Ichigo looked around himself. Urahara, Tatsuki, Orihime, Uryu, the woman Orihime had been talking with – who was _still_ naked – they all looked at expectantly, waiting for his answer.

"...You're all a bunch of bastards, you know that? Kidnapping me from home, dropping all sorts of crazy things on me, and asking me to believe them... I'm in." He stared defiantly at Urahara. "I still don't trust you further than I can throw you, though."

"And neither do you have to!" Urahara exclaimed cheerfully. "Here, follow Yoruichi-san, and I'll get what we need from the lab."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Humming cheerfully, Urahara Kisuke rummaged through his lab. "Damn, where did I put it…" he muttered. The cost of finding a shinigami willing to risk stealing an asauchi, plus the cost of finding a courier to smuggle it to the world of the living, was… steep, to say the least, and it would not do to have lost it. It wasn't like he was short on funds, but he _was_ short on time. Rummaging a little more, ruffling research notes and test equipment, he finally saw the sheath, buried under a stash of papers on kido theory. "Found you…"

"You should be more careful with important equipment like that." He jerked; he had been so excited he hadn't even sensed another presence in the lab.

"Arisawa-san." He said cheerfully, not missing a beat, "weren't you supposed to be with the others?"

"Yes." She said. "But I'm not." She held up a paper. "You see, last night, after training, I found something."

"I can't imagine what in this lab could possibly interest you, Arisawa-san. I didn't figure you for a science enthusiast."

"I'm not." She held the paper to him. Carefully, he looked at it.

"Oh, my."

Tatsuki read aloud from the paper. "Subject located in southeastern Karakura. Reiatsu is faint, but should be traceable so long as you are within a kilometer or less of the target. Forwarding a sample within this message for your benefit. A bill for my services will be sent straight to division six."

"I knew I should have burned that." Urahara said, sounding irritated. "So what now, Arisawa-san?"

"Well, my first thought was to go shouting how you sold Rukia out- but I wanted to give you a chance to explain." She looked at him coldly, her fists clenching. "So why don't you explain why you sold Rukia to their side, that side we're about to go after in her rescue?"

"You always were smarter than you seemed." Urahara said casually. "Let me make one thing clear- the soul society's agents would have found her eventually. No matter what I or anyone else did, you cannot hide from them, not in the world of the living- if you have reiatsu."

"Go on."

"I have taken some pains to ensure she stayed hidden for a while- subtle things like reiatsu suppressing drones, distortion beacons that change the readings of typical reiatsu sensory abilities, and so on. What happened two days ago was that she was taken in, on my conditions, exactly when I needed her to be taken in. And I made a neat profit on top of it, too."

"And why should I believe you?"

"Consider the following, Arisawa-san," Urahara said, calmly looking her in the eye, "it stands to reason that I am well connected, yes? That I have contacts, ways of finding out what goes on and where?"

"Yeah?"

"I knew about Kuchiki Rukia's loss of power from day one. I even supplied her gigai. Now, if I had wanted nothing but a quick, unscrupulous pay off, why would I have waited till two days ago?"

Tatsuki looked unconvinced, scowling at him.

"No, I have better plans than that. Sure, I rip off people every now and then- especially the Gotei Juusantai- but I'm not a villain. Rukia was caught, and now we have a decent schedule- a few days to train, or weeks if we need it- and then you make your entrance in the soul society, launching a rescue mission with plenty of time before her execution- coinciding neatly with your summer break. Timing, it's all about timing, Arisawa-san." He walked up to her, casually and slowly, and in one swift movement he had put his cane at her neck. "And consider this, too: if I was the bad guy, I would kill you for knowing this. I could, a hundred times over again- but I won't." Gently, he lowered his cane. "In fact, I am at your mercy, Arisawa-san. You have the power to undo my plans right here and now. All you have to do is go tell the others what you know, and they will lose trust in me. So what will you do, Arisawa-san?"

Tatsuki scoffed, and turned around, walking out.

As she marched out of the lab, she felt confused. She was angry that Urahara had kept things from them- not surprised, but angry, and she still wasn't sure what to do. His explanation had made sense, but then again, he was pretty persuasive. She shouldn't believe him just like that- but he was right, if she told everyone, then this was over and Rukia wouldn't be saved.

"You found something out." It was Uryu, observant as always, standing a bit away from the others.

"…yeah." She said, hesitantly. "I did."

"I'm no psychiatrist, Arisawa-san," he said coolly, "but whatever you found out, it upset you- but I don't think it upset you as much as you thought it would."

"Let's just say we can't really trust Urahara-san."

"Now that I thought was a given." Uryu said dryly.

Tatsuki chuckled. "It really should've been. Well, at least one of us is skeptical enough of him."

"It is simply in the nature of Quincy to distrust shinigami. It is the sort of thing that comes with being nearly completely wiped out by the Gotei."

Tatsuki blinked. "Being what?"

"Not that important. I'll tell you some other time." Uryu dismissed it, before simply walking off.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"So you're telling me to take this sword here, sever the chain that binds me to my body and essentially commit seppuku?" Ichigo asked, skeptically eyeing the blade that Urahara had brought him. Urahara had removed his soul from his body, which, just as Rukia's brother had said, didn't have any shinigami powers for him to use.

"If you want to put it that way, sure." Urahara confirmed, cheerful as ever, which did not exactly help Ichigo's mood.

"Uh-huh. Before I actually do that, though: Would you perhaps mind explaining me _how in the hell_ this is any different from committing outright suicide, or how exactly that is supposed to help me gain proper shinigami powers?"

"You sure can be glad that I do enjoy providing people with exposition, Kurosaki Ichigo, because otherwise I would just tell you to ask your friend Arisawa-san." He said nonchalantly, still very much grinning. "The sword that I have given you just now is an _asauchi_, the raw form of a shinigami's blade, the _zanpakutou_. A zanpakutou is essentially the very manifestation of your soul and your strength, a being with a mind of its own. By impaling yourself with this raw form, you are pretty much claiming the asauchi for yourself, making it your own zanpakutou. And don't you worry about the chain-severing part – as your friend Arisawa-san has proven, it is perfectly possible for you to still be a normal person after doing that. Once you have become a proper shinigami, you will simply wear your own body like a shinigami in the world of the living wears their gigai, with no side effects other than a potential longevity. Is that explanation enough for you?"

"...I suppose." Ichigo said, trying to get everything that Urahara had just explained sorted out for himself. "How- how does this work, though?"

"Do you have time for a seven hour lecture on spiritual physics?" Urahara said. "Essentially, your body is endowed with a lot of reiatsu, and reiatsu that is accustomed to shinigami powers at this point in time. Using the data I extracted from the process with Arisawa-san, I have almost perfected the method… and you are an ideal candidate. This sword has been attuned to your reiatsu already- so don't worry. You won't even feel the pain Arisawa-san had to go through."

"…alright then." Ichigo said, inspecting the blade closely.

"Good! Well then, I suppose you still remember the parts that come now."

Ichigo nodded silently, and then did as he was instructed to. Cutting of the chain, good. Running himself through with the sword... more of a mental hazard. He took a deep breath closed his eyes, and tried to calm himself down.

_Just do the same thing that you did when Rukia gave you her power._

He opened his eyes again, and quickly slid the blade into his chest.

Then he collapsed.


	11. Hard work has a high chance of working

**Author's Notes:  
**And here's chapter 11! Nothing much else to say other than that this is the last chapter before the Soul Society arc finally begins!

And on a side note: Getting some proper spacing done here on does indeed suck. 'Nuff said.

* * *

Ichigo found himself in a strange landscape, with a blue, near cloudless sky, and a strangely white set of rectangular hills, stretching as far as he could see. What was this place? He really wished he had asked what the experience would be like- but maybe this was one of those things you really had to figure out for yourself? Given how much it sounded like some crap from a fantasy novel, it probably was- the only problem was that he had _no fucking clue_ what to do next. Sit down and meditate?

Hesitantly, he sat down cross-legged, closing his eyes.

"Why are you sitting still?"

Ichigo jerked; the voice had come out of nowhere. He looked around, seeing nothing- but it had sounded like it was right next to him. It had been a deep, strong voice, like an older man…

"Who are you?!" He called.

"That's your question to answer." The voice came again, and this time he could make out a contour, obscured by light. "Tell me Ichigo, what is my name?"

"I'm supposed to name you?"

"I have a name. You must tell me what it is." The figure said, sounding enigmatic.

Ichigo got up, walking towards the silhouette. "Do I have to fight you, or something? Is that how it works?"

"In time." Ichigo could now make out more- the shape had a long, flapping coat of some kind, long brown hair, and orange coloured glasses of some kind. "But today, you call my name- or never speak to me again."

"How am I supposed to call your name, when I have no idea?!"

"You will find a way." And suddenly, in an instant, the landscape tilted forty-five degrees, and Ichigo began falling. Just quickly, before he began to catch momentum, he noticed that it had not been hills at all- they were white skyscrapers, and he had seen them from a strange angle at first.

"What the hell?!" He shouted, flailing wildly, "This is not helping my concentration! At all!"

The man hovered next to him as he fell, seemingly unaffected by the change in gravity. "And yet you must find a way, Kurosaki Ichigo, before you hit the ground. I have called out to you for many weeks now, ever since you first were born as a shinigami- now you must call mine. I will not be alone any longer."

"I would call it, if I knew how!" Ichigo shouted desperately. "Bloody hell, how is this supposed to help?" He looked down- he clearly wasn't falling at the same rate as in the normal world; there it would have taken only seconds to turn into paste against the sidewalk.  
Suddenly, as he watched the obscure ground come closer, he saw it- a hundred white boxes coming down, each with a long white ribbon attached to it.

"This is all you will need." The man said, stopping his hover, going upwards. "Find me, Ichigo."

With that, he vanished from Ichigo's view, leaving him falling towards his probable demise. Determined to try at least something, Ichigo maneuvered himself towards one of the boxes, got hold of it, and opened it. Inside of it, he found... a katana, which looked a good bit like the asauchi that he had been impaling himself with. Hadn't Urahara said something about the sword becoming something like a manifestation of his soul, a being with a mind of its own? Was this some sort of test to prove his worth as shinigami, or what?

Ichigo looked down once more. The ground hadn't come much closer, but he was certain the longer he hesitated, the faster he would fall – and impacts after a long fall had the annoying tendency to hurt a lot, spiritual realm-thing or not. Figuring that pondering about this all wasn't exactly the best thing to do while falling, Ichigo took the sword from the box, maneuvered himself towards the nearest skyscraper, and rammed it into it, attempting to at least slow his fall down...

Only for the blade to break. Well, crap.

Ichigo looked down again. The ground had come a noticeable bit closer. He grabbed another box that was close to him, and opened. It contained another katana, which, just like the previous one, resembled the asauchi. Ichigo looked around himself. There were _a lot_ of boxes.

If it weren't for the fact that he was in something that might very well be a life-or-death situation, Ichigo would have sighed. The instructions couldn't have been clearer.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Ishida-san, may I have a word?"

Uryu turned around. After he and everyone else had successfully convinced Kurosaki to join their rescue mission (though Uryu's own part in that was admittedly negligible), he had gone to a remote part of Urahara's absurdly spacious basement to train for himself. While it had been an obvious outcome, the fact that he had lost so badly to the shinigami that had come to retrieve Rukia still bothered Uryu a lot.

True, for the past few years now he had focused more on hunting hollows than on actually training his spiritual powers, and these two shinigami had probably worked multiple decades, if not centuries to reach that level of power... but it was shinigami like them, those allied to the Gotei Thirteen that had been responsible for his grandfather's death. Not being able to defeat them felt nothing short of disgraceful.

So he trained. Getting this entire operation started in the first place had been easier than he expected: All that Uryu needed to do was meet with Tatsuki, tell her what happened, and her connections to this shady shopkeeper did the rest – though Uryu did not trust the man in the slightest.

But while the highest priority was, of course, to rescue Rukia, he also hoped to somehow find the shinigami that were to blame for his grandfather's death, and then... fight them? Kill them? Uryu wasn't certain – but he did know that he wanted to _something_. And for that, he would have to get stronger.

Which would be easier to do if there wasn't a certain suspicious shopkeeper standing behind him.

"What is it, Urahara-san?" Uryu asked, trying his best to conceal his distrust towards the man.

"I do hope that I am not interrupting you during something important – like an interior monologue about vengeance – but if you do have some time to interrupt your training for a while, then there is something that I would like to ask of you." Urahara explained, with the exact kind of childlike cheerfulness that played a major part in his overall suspiciousness.

Uryu hesitated. Urahara was not exactly the kind of person that he would expect to ask for a favour if it was something unpleasant – if someone like him wanted you to do something unpleasant, he would probably skip the asking, and just make you do it somehow. "And what would that be?"

"I will be quite busy very soon, Ishida-san," he said, snapping his fan open, "and so will Yoruichi-san. "I will still make time to train Kurosaki-san, of course."

"Busy, you say? How so?"

"You wouldn't understand, I am sure," Urahara said cheerfully, "and even if you did, I am afraid I couldn't tell you."

"So you set us up for a rescue mission- us, a group of teenagers- and you won't help?"

"I will help in many ways, Ishida-san," he said, fanning himself, "but I only have so much time. That's why I am assigning Inoue-san to you."

"Say what?" Uryu flinched.

"You already have excellent reiatsu control- I could teach you some things, but it would be rather fine-tuned- nothing you would benefit from right now. Your skills are quite good as they are- your grandfather certainly was an exceptional teacher."

Uryu glared. What did he know about his grandfather? "What if I refuse?"

"We both know you're not going to be that immature about it, Ishida-san. To be frank, Inoue-san has a lot of potential… but she lags far behind the others. She needs tutelage from somebody who is well accustomed to using reiatsu, especially the finer details of its manipulation- which I believe is a quincy specialty."

"I was never taught how to tutor. I might be a terrible teacher."

"Alliterative!" Urahara grinned. "Nevertheless, that is how it must be. Arisawa-san has yet to fully blossom, and Kurosaki-san… he is just a seed. They need mine and Yoruichi-san's full attention."

"…fine." Uryu said, feeling less than pleased.

"Excellent!" Urahara cheered. "Inoue-san, over here!" He waved to Orihime, who cheerfully jogged over to the two of them.

"Hi, Ishida-kun!" She said, happily. "Oh, I mean- Ishida-sensei!" She smiled. Uryu felt a little knot in his stomach- he had never really learned how to behave around girls, much less the popular, attractive ones. "So what do we learn first?"

"I, uh," he began lamely, as Urahara walked away, smiling smugly, "uh… why don't you fill me in on what you learned so far?"

"Sure thing!" Orihime said. "All right, so at first there was this spark I was supposed to make, and I totally made it, which really made me feel like I was really a killer robot from mars like I always wanted…"

Oh, dear god…

* * *

oOo

* * *

The ground was closing in rapidly now. Ichigo was almost panicking; he could almost feel it, his ribs and spine getting smashed across the concrete…  
Shit. Shit shit shit fuck. What to do?

Quickly, he tried to focus. It was do or die- what could he do? He closed his eyes, trying to feel the reiatsu. Where was the right one? Where was the sword that was supposed to be his? Inhaling deeply, he forced himself calm. There was no ground, no anything, only him right here and now. That's right, no chance of imminent death at all…  
And then suddenly, he felt _something_. Not looking down, he reached out- there was something there, amidst the hundred boxes. One string, that seemed different… he squinted, looking closer.

What was a zanpakutou? It was supposed to be a reflection of yourself, right? Well…

"Is this a zanpakutou I see before me?" He mumbled, reaching for the string. He could see it now, red- how could he not have seen it before? It was plain as day now; shining in its blood red colour. Reaching out, he grabbed hold of the thread, pulling at it hard…

And finally, he just knew. Hitting him like a realization, like a word at the tip of his tongue finally coming out, he felt it- an entity inside of him, which had been calling his name, like in a dream… how much like a blind man he had been! And here it was. Pulling hard at the ribbon one last time, he shouted,

"I have you now… ZANGETSU!"

And out came the blade, and suddenly there was no falling any more. His surroundings shifted, and a moment later, he was safely standing on the skyscraper once more.

"You pass." Ichigo turned around. The man had reappeared behind him, and since he wasn't distracted by the fact that he was falling towards his doom anymore, Ichigo could finally get a good look at him.

The man was very tall, and had a lean build. He had stubble, ragged black hair, and a stoic expression that at the very least matched that of Rukia's brother in lack of emotion.

"So you're Zangetsu."

"Yes. I am the spirit of your Zanpakutou... and to be honest with you, if we you were approaching your training more traditionally, you would not be seeing me for at least another five years." Zangetsu said. He spoke stoically, too, Ichigo noted. And that guy was supposed to be a manifestation of his own soul? Hard to believe...

"There's no time for that! Rukia is going to be executed if we wait too long!" Ichigo retorted.

"I know. That is part of the reason why I already showed myself to you. That, and this shady shopkeeper using untraditional methods that allow you to rush things... but that is beside the point. The reason that you are here is so that you can learn about your powers." He materialized a katana identical to the one that Ichigo had retrieved from the box out of thin air, and pointed it at Ichigo.

"So what does this do, old man Zangetsu?"

"That is for you to find out, Ichigo."

Zangetsu… what a strange name. Cutting Moon? What a cheesy name!

"I can feel your thoughts, too," Zangetsu said dryly, "and the name is subtler than you'd think."

"Could be worse." Ichigo said, smiling nervously. "At least the sword- uh, you- don't look too bad."

"This is not its true form." Zangetsu said. "All zanpakutou have a sealed form- like this- and a true form, the _shikai_. Call for me, and you will see."

Carefully, Ichigo took the blade from Zangetsu, weiginh it in the palm of his hand. "Uhm, okay…" He swallowed, closing his eyes. Do this on instinct…

"Destroy them, _Zangetsu!_"

There was a bright flash, and he felt the blade change, elongate, grow… it was no longer the same.  
Once it had stopped its glowing, Ichigo inspected the blade closer. It was a strange shape- all black, and positively huge. It had to be almost as long as he- and strangely, it looked more like an oversized knife than a sword. No guard, only a long, long, heavy blade, with a solid steel grip wrapped in cloth.

"That is who I am." The old man said. "Your weapon, here to destroy your enemies so that your beloved people can live safely."

"That's surprisingly violent." Ichigo remarked, carefully trying the weight of the blade. It was feeling much lighter than it looked- Ichigo felt like it should have the kind of weight class that weapons that looked more like a giant slab of iron than a sword would have.

"Are you not violent?"

"I'm not!"

"Part of you is. It is the part of you that wants to protect as well as punish. You are not the kind of person to do violence for the sake of violence- but do not deny that when you need to, you can be quite violent."

":..I guess." Ichigo said. "Uh, so…"

"This will suffice for now." Zangetsu said. "Until next time, Ichigo- you have much more to learn before you have mastered me."

"Okay-"

And suddenly everything went white, then black, and suddenly his body felt… numb. The kind of numb you get from lying on a rock floor. Irritated, he blinked, light stinging his eyes.

"What…" he grunted. He looked to his side- and there it lay, a longsword, neatly sheathed. It had a long, black hilt, and an equally black, rounded guard. "Zangetsu…" he mumbled, feeling it resonate back in response.

"He's awake!" It was Tatsuki.

"You make that sound like it's surprising or something..." Ichigo said, slowly trying to sit up, which was easier said than done, since his entire body still felt very much tired.

As he got up, he heard footsteps approaching, and a moment later, Urahara entered his field of vision, followed by Yoruichi. While the latter was still completely naked, she was now at least in her cat form once more, making her nudity more acceptable; cats usually don't wear clothes.

"Well, it is kinda surprising, actually. When I first got my powers, it took me even longer to get to my senses again."

"Ah, there is a reason for that, my dear Arisawa-san." Urahara interjected, eagerly jumping at the opportunity to provide exposition. "Since Kurosaki-san already had the powers of a substitute shinigami before, the process of turning him into a fully-fledged one was not a completely new experience to his body and soul. That is why it didn't take him thirty hours to complete the process of becoming a shinigami."

Ichigo blinked a few times and shook his head, trying to get rid of this feeling numbness and being sleepy. Having a conversation when being like this was probably not exactly a good thing to do... how else could he have misheard Urahara as him saying that Tatsuki had been out for thirty hours?

...unless he had heard right. "Wait, did I hear this right? Tatsuki had been out for thirty hours? ...How long have I been out, anyway?"

"Yes, yes, and five hours. Like I said, you were quite fast in comparison to Arisawa-san... which might also have something to do with the fact that you didn't outright fall unconscious once you properly obtained your powers." Urahara answered nonchalantly.

Ichigo calmly stared at the shop owner silently, taking a few seconds to let that what he had just heard sink in properly. So apparently, he had been out for- "FIVE HOURS?! I need to go back home! Oh god, I don't even want to imagine how my mother is going to react!"

"Hey, at least you weren't out for thirty hours..." Tatsuki grumbled, which was lost on Ichigo.

"Tsk, tsk. I feel offended, Kurosaki-san." Urahara chided in a playfully offended tone. "Do you honestly believe that a stalking, kidnapping bastard such as me wouldn't take things like that into consideration?"

"We have already taken care of your mother, Ichigo, don't you worry. For the time being, we can just focus on your training." Yoruichi added in, now once again speaking in a much deeper voice.

Ichigo looked around himself irritably, before taking a deep, deep breath in an attempt to calm himself down. They had 'taken care' of his mother... it was probably better not to ask what that was supposed to mean. Considering how shady of a person this shopkeeper was, knowing what they had done would probably give Ichigo only more reason to worry.

"...Right." He finally said, using his sword to help himself get up. "So, uh, training. What are we gonna do now?"

"Now, Kurosaki-san, comes the part where she punches you." Urahara said cheerfully.

"Huh?" Ichigo said. "Oh, we're supposed to spar-"

And he managed to just barely roll out of the way from a flying axe kick from Tatsuki. The ground beneath it cracked, and Ichigo quickly got to his feet, barely remembering to hold on to Zangetsu. "What the hell, no warning?"

"No warnings, no help." Tatsuki said determinedly. "Where we're going, we're not going to be facing duels. We'll be fighting people who are trying to kill us."

"Got it." Ichigo said. He reached for the hilt of his sword- but in an instant, Tatsuki was in front of him, slamming her fist into his gut, quickly following it up with a roundhouse kick to his shoulder. Ichigo barely blocked it- damn, when had she learned to kick like a mule? She hadn't beaten him in a fight since they were twelve; this was a completely different Tatsuki.

"At least let me draw my god damn sword!" He shouted.

"Draw it if you can." She shot back.

"Hmm." Yoruichi said, sounding thoughtful. "That was a shunpo she used right now. Shoddy, but an actual flash step- you've trained her well in just a few weeks, Kisuke."

"She's been coming here every day. Her training's showing." Urahara nodded.

Ichigo had finally managed to get his sword out, dropping the sheath on the ground. He took a stance- this, he could do. Tatsuki scoffed, and reached into her shihakusho, pulling out a shorter blade, holding it in a reverse grip. Oh, this was good news- even he knew that in a swordfight, the longer blade had the advantage.  
Not wasting any time, Tatsuki charged with absurd speed, slamming her short blade into his, time and again. Ichigo parried- he could do it. He could react fast enough; he wasn't outclassed. Letting out a loud cry, he hit back, bringing his blade down hard…

And Tatsuki let the blade slide, dropping to the ground, supporting herself on an arm and a leg, sweeping her other leg into Ichigo's knee joint. Hard.  
Ichigo groaned, violently being forced down to one leg. Tatsuki didn't let up, slamming her foot into his solar plexus. Ichigo saw stars. He struggled to stand up- Tatsuki had jumped back, but was coming at him again. Groaning with annoyance, he got up to his feet- and there she was, catching his sword before he could even get into a stance, shoving it aside. Quickly, she put her blade to his neck.

"One for Arisawa-san!" Urahara cheered. "That will do- both of you, separate!"

Tatsuki obeyed, walking back a bit. There was a distance of perhaps five yards between them, enough that either could prepare for an attack.

"When the hell did you get this strong?" Ichigo groaned, rubbing his knee.

"Lots of hard work." Tatsuki said. "Urahara's shady, but he knows his stuff. Plus, I know how to handle a longsword opponent."

"Well, I guess I better up my game," Ichigo said, holding out his zanpakutou to the side. "Destroy them, Zangetsu!"

And he felt the transformation happening again, the blade resonating with him, whispering in his ear, singing with joy for finally being used… there it was, the black slab of iron almost as big as himself.

"That's what you got, huh?" Tatsuki said. "Not bad, I guess."

"I showed you mine- why don't you show me yours?"

"Yeah. Sure, I'll show you."

* * *

oOo

* * *

_She was back in her zanpakutou's realm again. It had been two weeks since she first got it, and this was well over the twentieth time she had visited, and the damn thing was still being difficult._

_The realm was not bad in itself- it was like a cross between a dojo and a military arms museum. On the walls were weapons of all kinds- European great swords, katana, nodachi, ninja-to, morning stars… on one wall there were Mongol composite bows, on another there were kukris, machete and an assortment of other really nasty-looking blades._

_"You really have a thing for weapons." She mumbled._

_"I am your weapon, and a reflection of yourself." It was the spirit of her blade, suddenly standing opposite of her on one of the mats in the dojo. It was tall, its features obscured by a brown and red samurai's armour, face obscured by that orange and black mask. It was an imposing figure to deal with- its voice deep, its arm strong and fast, its footing so solid that her karate teacher would have cried with joy if she had seen it. "These weapons are a reflection of martial prowess."_

_"I prefer hand to hand, though…"_

_"Yes, we both do." The spirit said. It was always like this- conversing at first, then it would suddenly assault her, trying to beat her into the ground. She had stopped losing entirely, but she still couldn't beat it- too fast, too furious. "Have you come here to claim my name again?"_

_"I wish you wouldn't be so stubborn." Tatsuki said, sounding annoyed. "Is it really all you want, fighting?"_

_"Is it what **you** want, Tatsuki?"_

_"Always with the riddles." She grumbled. "Well, I think more like-"_

_And then she leapt forward, spinning her left leg round in a roundhouse kick, aimed for the spirit's head. She missed, just barely, as the spirit stepped back._

_"Surprise attack. You improve."_

_"You ain't seen nothing yet!" Tatsuki shot back, launching herself into a series of heavy, fast hits and kicks, trying to keep the spirit on its guard. She had to beat it somehow, just somehow…_

_And then the creature simply caught her foot, and flipped her over. Tatsuki just barely managed to balance her fall, catching herself with her arms and going into a backwards somersault, quickly back on her feet. She could see the spirit's foot strike where she had been just a second ago- that was a close shave._

_"Not bad." The creature said dispassionately, charging forward in a tackle. Tatsuki sidestepped, and slammed a fist into its side- which was largely not effective, because fists do not do well against armour. The spirit replied with a spinning kick; Tatsuki bent her knees and dodged low, jumping back up, going for its mask again. The spirit reacted, slamming a fist into her torso- but Tatsuki was ready, diverting the force of the punch, catching the wrist with her left hand. Quickly, she kicked up towards his other fist, slapping it away. There it was, an opening at last… she lashed out, her free arm readying for the punch of a lifetime-_

_And suddenly, there was a burning pain in her left shoulder. The spirit had… stabbed her, somehow. A concealed blade in the sleeve of the arm her left hand had been catching._

_"You are not yet ready."_

_"Cheater!" Tatsuki shouted, frustrated._

_"Do your enemies on the battlefield play by the rules? Are you naïve enough to expect them to do so, for your sake? Child."_

_Quickly, Tatsuki grabbed the stabbing arm with both hands, and slammed her knee into the gut of the spirit. It twisted, trying to retract its arm, but Tatsuki would not let go. She was not losing, not again! Quickly, she followed up on the knee hit, striking it twice, thrice, until it staggered back. Then, she let go of the hand, finally driving a hit home with her unhurt right arm, slamming it hard into the mask of the spirit. There was a crack, and she could see smooth, white skin under the mask._

_"I wounded you… and you turned it to your advantage." The spirit was, she could just barely see, smiling._

_"Damn straight! And I don't care if I lose an arm, I'll still beat you into the dirt until I know your name!"_

_"Good show." The spirit said, stepping back. "You have proven yourself worthy. Tatsuki, my name is…_

* * *

oOo

* * *

Her reiatsu spiked, and there was a faint glow as Tatsuki held her blade up.

"Strike, _Raitora!_"

Her sword began to glow, shift and change form... but Ichigo wasn't going to wait until it was done. Determined to not let this chance go to waste, Ichigo charged at Tatsuki as fast as he could, intending to knock whatever weapon her blade transformed into out of her hand.

Only to find his sword blocked, anyway.

"Oy, Ichigo! Attacking me while I'm releasing my zanpakutou? That's my trick!" Tatsuki growled, audibly strained by the strength that it took her to hold back Ichigo's sword.

Ichigo gave her a confident grin. "Just keep telling yourself that! I've been using that sorta thing since before you even had your powers!"

From his current perspective, Ichigo could not properly see what kind of weapon Tatsuki's zanpakutou had become, but whatever it was, it was small – and therefore not exactly suited for clashing with a person-sized sword. For now, he was at an advantage... but after losing the previous round, he knew better than to let it get to his head.

Careful to stay out of reach for any possible counter-attacks, Ichigo put more force into his sword...  
Only for Tatsuki to push his sword to the side, causing it to ram right into the ground. Not even a second later, Ichigo had a blade in front of his neck.

"And the second one goes to Arisawa-san, too!" Urahara declared. "That's enough for this round, Arisawa-san. Let him go."

Once again, Tatsuki did as she was ordered. As she lowered her weapon, she gave a Ichigo a smug grin. More importantly, though, he could now see what weapon she was wielding now in her shikai...

"Daggers? That's your weapon?" Ichigo asked, surprised.

"Sort of." Tatsuki said. Almost instantly, her daggers changed shape once more, becoming a pair of a brass knuckles. "I can switch freely between the daggers and these here – though this is the base form, so to speak. If it weren't for your little trick just there, you would not have been able to even catch me with that slab of iron of yours! I'm very fast with these, y'see?"

And apparently was quite proud of it, too. Great. "Bah, the only real difference here is that you already had some training, unlike me. If we had the same amount of training, your speed would be just about useless." Ichigo retorted.

"You know what I think?" Tatsuki said, sounding dismissive. "I think I'm finally strong enough to take you, and you're sore about it."

"Then you wouldn't mind demonstrating the limits of your strength, Arisawa-san?" Urahara interjected before Ichigo could even think of a way to respond to that. "If that is really what you think, then there is something that I believe I should do."

Tatsuki gave him a confused look. "Huh?"

"Just wait here for a moment. The two of you shall see soon enough." And with that, he hurried off, leaving even Yoruichi to stare after him in confusion. When the shopkeeper returned a few minutes later, he was followed by Uryu and Orihime, neither of which really seemed to have an idea of what was going, either... or at least, Uryu didn't. With Orihime, this sort of thing was harder to tell.

"So, Arisawa-san. If you are truly so confident in your abilities, then I would suggest that you provide us with some proof of your claim of your being the strongest out of the four of you. Defeat Ishida-san."

"…all right." Tatsuki said, raising her fists. "I'll take him on. Sure."

"Hang on a second, Urahara-san!" Uryu objected, "I didn't agree to this. What if she's hurt?"

"I trust your control, Ishida-san." Urahara said, smiling wide.

"Maybe I'll be the one to hurt you, Ishida-san." Tatsuki said, already having taken a stance.

"You would undoubtedly hurt me if you could hit me, I do not doubt that." Uryu said, causally readjusting his glasses. "But I don't think you can."

"Now who's cocky?"

"It's not arrogance, Arisawa-san. Your reiatsu and training is inferior, and your close-combat aptitude puts you at a disadvantage."

"Let's just go!" Tatsuki said impatiently.

"Fine." Uryu said, sounding irritated. He hadn't expected this- then again, sparring shouldn't be unexpected. Slowly, he walked up, taking a stance.

* * *

"You know, Tatsuki seems a bit… different today." Orihime said.

"I wouldn't know for sure, but… Ichigo shut her out. I wouldn't be surprised if she still was a little angry with him." Yoruichi mused.

"Oh, I guess that makes sense," Orihime nodded. "They were friends since they were kids and everything."

"That, and the drug has some side effects." Urahara said offhandedly. "In her case, it causes overconfidence. It's a subtle chemical process, and I've since readjusted the serum… but for the time being, the more reiatsu she uses, the more confident she gets without being able to help it."

"You never mentioned that." Yoruichi frowned.

"I didn't confirm it till just now. I had a good idea, but I needed more data. I'll talk to Arisawa-san later."

* * *

Tatsuki charged at Uryu, slipping into a simple shunpo. The brass knuckles began charging; she would hit him hard-

And suddenly, Uryu was standing twenty yards away, on a large rock. Before she could react, he had shot her twice, each shot grazing her leg.

"I told you, your style is at a disadvantage." Uryu explained. "And it will be until you are at least equally as fast as I am. Your current level of flash step is impressive for a rookie, but really inadequate compared to me."

"Stop talking and fight!" Tatsuki demanded.

"Fair enough." Uryu hopped down, and began casually walking towards Tatsuki. Readying herself, she raised her fists-  
And then he was behind her, and she could feel a spiritual arrow humming at the base of her skull.

"Ishida-san wins!" Urahara exclaimed cheerfully.

"…damn it." Tatsuki grumbled. He really was quite ahead of her…

"You are quite fast considering the amount of training that you had this far, I will give you that... but that is no good reason to get as over-confident as you have gotten." Uryu said, lowering his bow. "You are easily faster than Kurosaki-san, but that alone isn't saying much."

"I get it already! Stop lecturing me!" Tatsuki moaned in annoyance. Why did Uryu suddenly believe that he needed to lecture her?

"I am only saying this to warn you, Arisawa-san. We are going to be attacking Soul Society, where our enemies will fight to kill us. It is for the better if they aren't the ones that tell you about your weaknesses."

Tatsuki sighed. "I get it, I get it..."

"That is enough for now, Ishida-san!" Urahara stated.

"Can I get back to helping Inoue-san with her training then?" Uryu asked, casually walking away from Tatsuki, and towards Urahara.

The shopkeeper nodded. "Quite. You made a good point, and helped me confirm something – that is all that I need your help for now. Thank you, good sir."

Uryu rolled his eyes, but didn't say another word, simply leaving the room instead. Waving happily at Tatsuki, Orihime followed him a moment later.

"So what do we do now?" Tatsuki asked, once they were gone. "Another sparring match?"

"In a moment, Arisawa-san." Urahara said, covering his mouth with his fan, which did not exactly help him in looking particularly trustful. "Before we get to that, I suppose it might interest you what exactly I was able to find out thanks to Ishida-san's help..."

One short explanation later, Tatsuki was not only very much baffled, but also a bit infuriated. "You mean these drugs are still affecting me? Now, several weeks after I have taken them?!"

"So it would appear, yes. How else would you explain your recent tendencies to become so overconfident? Unless you have somehow, and miraculously, have hidden this specific character trait of yours from me – which, as I might add in, is not very likely – this is the only explanation that I can offer. But do not worry, even this effect should wear off after a certain amount of time."

"Time?"

"Only a few months, I wager."

Before Tatsuki could express her baffled frustration, Ichigo spoke up. "Well, this is nice and all..." he interjected "But can we get to the actual training now?"

"Quite." Urahara said. "Arisawa-san, Kurosaki-san, go again."

"Got it." Tatsuki said, frowning. It felt uneasy, knowing the side effect of the drug.

"Guh…" Ichigo grumbled, still not happy about his performance. "Let's do this, then."

The both of them walked out, away from the others, and took their stances. Tatsuki clicked her brass knuckles together, holding her fists up, this time waiting for Ichigo to strike first.  
Ichigo, unsure of what to do, held his sword up, letting his reiatsu rise. All right… how would he fight somebody faster than he was? Carefully, he stepped forward, slowly letting the walk turn into a charge. He swung his sword in a horizontal arc, aiming for Tatsuki's chest. A thought occurred to him- what if he actually hit? He would do a whole lot of damage-

Not that that mattered; Tatsuki ducked low and the swing went over her harmlessly. Quickly, she put her hand on the blade.

"What-" he managed.

"Charge!" Tatsuki declared, and there was a spark of blue- and suddenly Ichigo staggered backwards, shocked- literally shocked; it was like he had been kicked by a horse. Tatsuki quickly followed with a direct kick to his chest, unbalancing him, knocking him over. "That's Raitora's power, Ichigo," she explained. "Lightning. And what's a good conductor for lightning?"

"Metal." He grunted. "So you can switch between two different kinds of weapon, and have electricity powers, too? I'm so gonna demand some new powers out of old man Zangetsu when I see him next time... maybe something like fire. Uh, anyway, does that even work? I mean, this sword feels like metal- but it's all reiatsu, isn't it?"

Tatsuki shrugged, taking him by the hand and pulling him up. "It seems to work that way, though."

"You're going easier on me." He noted.

"Hell no." She said. "I'm just not going to kick you when you're down."

"Yeah?" Ichigo said, taking a stance. "So maybe-"

But Tatsuki didn't let him rest for one second, instantly slamming a charged fist into his general chest area. Ichigo just barely blocked it, this time anticipating the shock. Hopping back, he held out his sword. Tatsuki charged at him, hammering him with kicks, punches, more kicks, keeping him on the defensive. Ichigo swore inwardly; her rapid style of attack meant he couldn't swing his sword to do big enough damage- unless he got away from her furious barrage. Hopping back rapidly, he managed to get some distance between them. He held his sword up, firmly with both hands, prepared as she came at him. He swung down, hard, but Tatsuki sidestepped, and again dropped to the ground, sweeping at his feet.  
But Ichigo was prepared this time, jumping just over her swing. Quickly, before he hit the ground, he lashed out with his foot. He was rewarded with a solid impact, and a surprisingly gratifying groan from Tatsuki. Before she could recover, he brought his blade down, stopping it just before it hit her neck.

"I win this one." He grinned, standing triumphant.

"You do, do you?" Quickly, Tatsuki kicked up, right into the most painful place imaginable, and Ichigo let out a loud squeal, and sunk to his knees.

"Draw!" Urahara declared.

"Draw?"

"Draw." He nodded. "If that had been a real fight, you would have died- but then again, Kurosaki-san let his guard down. Draw."

"…okay." She smiled sheepishly. "Uh, sorry Ichigo." She gave him her hand, pulling him up to his feet. "You okay?"

"Just fine!" Ichigo said, just barely managing to get the words out, still bent over. "Juuuust fine. Oh god…"

"The two of you will be sparring a lot the next few days," Urahara said cheerfully. "And with myself, and Yoruichi-san. Be prepared to hurt."

Trying his best to ignore the unimaginable pain that a certain part of his body was in, Ichigo managed to grin. "I wouldn't have it any other way... though I could do with less groin attacks."

* * *

oOo

* * *

And just like that, two weeks passed. Over the course of this time, Ichigo, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime made great progress with their respective trainings – though in the end, little changed in regards to how strong each of them was in comparison to one another. Uryu was and remained the strongest among them, followed by Tatsuki, who had the advantage of already having had more training than Ichigo to begin with. Orihime was the weakest out of them, though that came to the surprise of absolutely no one. Since the date of Rukia's execution had already been set, there simply was not enough time to awaken Orihime's potential in the form of shinigami powers (or for Uryu to teach her how to use Quincy arts, for that matter), so that the only other option that remained was a more simple power that could more easily be used by living people... or at least that was what Urahara claimed.

Orihime being comparatively weak ultimately seemed to matter little, anyway; the powers that she eventually did awaken with Uryu's help were, in contrast to Ichigo's and Tatsuki's, a lot more defensive and supportive in nature, which more than made up for her lack of offensive strength.

Ichigo, on the other hand, somehow managed to convince the spirit of his Zanpakutou to grant him two more new tricks, though Ichigo was still far from actually having mastered them. Zangetsu had made it very clear that he was not approving of Ichigo rushing his training with Urahara's methods, and it showed time and time again. While he did help Ichigo with his training either through direct spars, moral support, or just talking with him, it was easy to tell that Zangetsu did so reluctantly.

From what Ichigo heard from Tatsuki, things with her and Raitora weren't much better, either- the samurai-spirit, as Tatsuki described it, had gladly helped her get to the point where she could activate her shikai, but anything beyond that just went by slowly. When the two of them had talked about the matter to Urahara, the shopkeeper had just dismissed the Zanpakutou spirit's behaviour as something that was to be expected from the methods that he had developed.

But with these hindrances, their training went on, with plenty of sparring matches between themselves (most of which Uryu would win), and Urahara and his subordinates (most of which Ichigo and his friends lost). After little less than about two weeks, they finally got to the point where Urahara announced that the four of them were ready to begin their rescue mission within the next couple of days, and that they should make their final preparations.

Luckily for Ichigo and the others, summer break began about two days into their training, so that they at the very least did not have to worry about school for the time being. Their family and friends, however, were another matter entirely. While Orihime and Uryu both didn't have much problems with their excuses (on account on Orihime not having any parents to worry about, and Uryu's father seemingly not caring), Ichigo and Tatsuki had to constantly think of new reasons to give their families and friends for them staying away from home for most of the day, since neither of them wanted Urahara to 'take care of things'.

Things were particularly hard for Ichigo, who was now, that he had gained proper shinigami powers, once more facing the dilemma of having to decide when and how to perform the soul burial for Yuzu. While Tatsuki had offered to perform the soul burial in his place, Ichigo had rejected the offer. It was his family, his sister – if he did have to power to do it, then he should have to be the one to let his sister move on.

So when Urahara told him to make his final preparations, Ichigo found himself torn once more. Should he let his sister move on before he left, and then try to find her at Soul Society, so that he could help her once he was already there? Or should he wait until they returned from the afterlife (which they hopefully did), and then decide whether she should stay with them some longer, or move on? No matter what his decision would be, in the end, he would still have to let her move on – and at the same time, he would have to reveal to his family what he had been doing this entire time... reveal to them that he had become a shinigami.

But before he could even do that, he needed to settle something else first.

* * *

The sun was setting as he walked home. His feet felt heavy, and it was not because of the hours long training sessions he had been doing. No, this was different…  
Reluctantly, he walked up the street leading to his mother's apartment, his home. He opened the door, took his shoes off and hung his coat on the wall. Absent-mindedly, he said,

"I'm home."

There was no answer- the place had been quiet, oh so quiet, since Yuzu's death. He walked through the hallway and into the living room. There his mother was, sitting by the window in her armchair, looking out into the distance, although probably not looking at anything in particular- she had that same look he had whenever he was deep in thought, staring out into a distant nothing without focus.

"Kaa-san." He said softly, grabbing a chair and taking a seat opposite of her.

"Ichigo." She said, as if she had only just now noticed his presence. "You're back late- are you hungry? Do you want me to make you a sandwich- or maybe I could heat some leftovers for you-"

"I'm not hungry." He said solemnly. "We…"

How would he even begin? 'You've been deceiving me for a really long time, mom, what the fuck?'

"Recently… I've had some really weird things happen to me." He mumbled. "And ah, I need to talk. To you."

"What about?" She tensed a little, he could see it.

Well, there was no point in being subtle. "You've been talking to Yuzu's ghost. So have I."

"What on earth are you talking about-"

"Don't bullshit me!" Ichigo burst out angrily, instantly stopping himself- it was still his mother, and he was here to find out why, not to shout at her. "I… what I mean to say is, she's been talking to me too."

"Ichigo, we're going through a difficult time. It's not strange to see things that aren't there-" Her voice was trembling a little now, however much she tried to sound normal.

"All my life, you told me to never believe in ghost stories, in gods or demons or spirits, to only believe what was solid. And when I told you I could see ghosts, you would shush me angrily."

"Because it's silly."

"I never questioned you, kaa-san." He said, shaking his head. "You always loved me and you were always there for me. You've been strict when you needed to and understanding when I needed it. When I got a reputation as a punk, you believed me when I said it wasn't my fault."

"Of course I believed you. You've always been a sweet boy," she nodded, looking nervous. "So what's this?"

"Why did you lie to me, kaa-san?"

"I never lied to you. Ghosts aren't real!"

"I can see them!" He shot back. "Karin can see them, and so can you! Now would you _please_ tell me what's going on?"

"…you want me to tell you what's going on?" Her tone sunk into that strict, 'I am very disappointed with you, young man!' voice she would use, the kind that would straighten his spine in an instant. "Why don't _you_ tell _me_ why I've been finding blood in your clothes these last months?" She stood up, and begun pacing back and forth. "Why don't you tell me who Kuchiki Rukia really is?"

"So you knew…" he mumbled.

"I'm your mother!" She snapped. "I do your laundry. I clean your room. I know everything about you. I know what books you read, who all of your friends are, what you like and what you don't like. I even know where you keep your dirty magazines."

"I don't-"

"In a cardboard box on the top shelf of your wardrobe, covered by shonen jump issues." She said. Ichigo felt a sinking feeling. Damn. "I know enough to notice when my son is doing something off. At first I thought it was just street fights- that happened before- and that girl, but it was pretty obvious something was going on, and not something normal."

How in the hell had she turned this around on him? Why was _he_ the one feeling guilty? "You still lied to me!"

"I lied to you?" She looked furious. "I've been doing what I've done since you weighed a kilo and a half- protecting you!"

"I don't need to be protected!" He shot back, angrily.

"How many times have you been hurt this recent time, Ichigo?" She asked coldly. "How many times have you needed stitches, bandages, serious medical care? Yes, I know about the spirit world- and just like your father, all it does is hurt people!"

Well, he couldn't really argue that away; he had been hurt a lot…  
"I was hurt, yeah." He said. "But I've also been helping people. People who would be dead otherwise. Uh, deader."

"I know more about the spirit world than you do, Ichigo," she said, putting her foot down, "and trust me, that's a world of death and suffering. Be grateful that you don't have to be a part of it anymore, now that Rukia is gone!"

"Why did you keep this from me? I thought I was going insane!"

"Please Ichigo… I just wanted you to be safe." There was something pleading in her eyes, and despite himself, Ichigo felt his anger drain away. She had always done what she thought was best for him- she'd never lie to him out of malice.

"Yeah… I guess." He said, awkwardly scratching his head. "So ah, about Rukia being gone and me not being part of this anymore…"

He could see the dread in his mother's face, washing over it like a flood, clearing away all anger. "No…"

Carefully, he took out his gikongan, smoothly slipping out of his body, standing tall before her in his shinigami uniform. His mother almost collapsed; Ichigo caught her in his arms as she stumbled forward.

"Oh god, no…" She moaned, tears streaming down her face. "Not you too, Ichigo, not you too…"

"Was my dad like this?" She nodded through the tears, crying into Ichigo's shoulder. "What was he like, then?"

"He… he was a great shinigami." She managed. "But then he was… gone." He could see the pain on her face; he almost wanted to tell her to stop, but he needed to know. "I always thought this could happen, so… I just wanted to shield you from it, okay? Be safe from these things."

"I understand." He said, hugging her tight.

"I- I could always feel it, you know," she said. "I could always feel the energy, even when I was little. I could feel it in you before you were even born. But this… it just hurts people, Ichigo."

"Listen, kaa-san," he said, looking her in the eye, "I'm going to go save Rukia. She's going to be killed unless I help her. And when that's done, I'm coming back here. I'm not going to end up some dumb hero dying gloriously for some cause. I'm going to be fine, and I'm going to come back alive and in one piece. Got it?"

His mother gave him a long, silent stare. Then- "Please don't die on me, Ichigo. We just buried Yuzu... don't be the next one that I have to lose."

"I won't die. And neither will Rukia. I'm not gonna do this alone, either. I have friends that will go with me. We will return victorious!" Ichigo said, doing his best to sound confident, to actually believe what he was saying – which was harder than he had hoped.

Once again, Masaki silently stared at her son for what seemed to be ages. Ichigo already began to fear that she still might disapprove of his plans, that she saw through his facade, so that he subconsciously tensed when she finally did speak up again. "Make sure to keep that promise, Ichigo."

"I will. So, uh, I guess I'll get going now. I'll see you in about two weeks." With that, he returned to his own body, and walked out, leaving his mother to look after him. Once he was gone, she sat down again, and sighed. She should already have seen this conversation coming, but actually having it was entirely different from anticipating it. It all really should already have been obvious to her back when that man had visited her...

* * *

_"Why hello there, Masaki-san! Haven't seen you in a while."_

_Masaki turned around. She was out grocery shopping, and was just on her way home when the voice had spoken up behind her – a voice that she had not heard in years, but still recognized. "Urahara. What do you want from me?" She asked, with hostility in her tone that she didn't even bother to hide._

_"Oh, nothing in particular, my dear. I just wanted to talk a bit with you about the whereabouts of your son." The shopkeeper said, with the exact kind of unfittingly upbeat attitude that she had always hated about him._

_Masaki gaped. Ichigo had been away from home since yesterday afternoon – she had so far not really put any thought into it, since this was hardly an unusual thing to do for Ichigo, but if Urahara was involved, there was just no way that this could be good. "What business do you have with my son, you-!"_

_"Ah, ah, ah! Please, Masaki-san, do mind your language. Cussing is just unbecoming of you." Urahara chided playfully. "It is more befitting of your son, in fact – who just happens to be training over at my place, as I wanted to inform you. Said training might be taking up a high amount of his time, so I figured that it would be for the best if you knew."_

_"Training? What are you talking about?!" Masaki quickly asked. This just couldn't be what she feared it was... it just _couldn't_._

_"Isn't it obvious? Training to regain the powers of a shinigami, and to strengthen them, all for the purpose of preventing the execution of Kuchiki Rukia."_

_"No..." She whispered, stumbling back. "You're lying! Ichigo quit this nonsense when Rukia left! He's not a part of _this world anymore! He's normal again!"

_Urahara shrugged. "Keep telling that to yourself if you want. You know who and what his father was – it should not surprise you that he is doing this. I was only here to inform you of it. Whether you actually believe me is none of my business. The fact remains that Ichigo and three of his friends will be in Soul Society to prevent an execution. And who knows? Maybe he might even meet his father."_

_Masaki gave the shopkeeper a mad glare. "That's exactly what I'm worried about."_


	12. When running, make sure to not look back

**Author's Notes:**  
Here we go, off to Soul Society! About time, too!

* * *

The sun was shining bright on the thirteen court guard divisions, its radiant bright walls making the place almost shine. Abarai Renji couldn't have cared less, though- the events of these last few months had made him uneasy, and right now it would be fair to say he was on edge. Smacking that Quincy around had helped relieve some tension, but now it was back with a vengeance. He had just finished inspection rounds with his captain, and the two of them were headed out to grab some lunch- or "ingest a well-earned supper", as his noble captain would probably put it.

Something about this whole mess was… wrong. Not the dinner; the place they usually went to served really good shrimp- no, it was more how Rukia, his childhood friend (and definitely only childhood friend and nothing more) was facing charges. It was strange that she was charged at all; the system was unwilling to punish nobility unless it had been so blatantly disregarding the law that it would do more harm not to ignore it. He could perhaps have believed that her brother, his captain, would have insisted- he was zealously devoted to keeping the law, after all. But the order hadn't come from him at all. And now, he'd heard talk about… an execution? That made no god damn sense- Rukia had broken the rules, but even for non-nobility that would normally not result in more than a demotion, a fine of some kind, or at worst a couple of months in prison. This was absurd.

"You are troubled, Renji." Byakuya observed. Fucker- he always knew how to read reiatsu well enough to read emotion.

"This ain't right," Renji grumbled. "Rukia doesn't deserve this- with all due respect, taicho, something's wrong with the law here."

He had half expected his captain to snap at him, in his cold, collected way, but he simply said,  
"It is out of our hands. We may not always agree with the rulings of our betters, but we must remember that they are our betters. Those who judge earned their place through wisdom and experience that we cannot compare to."

"Betters, my arse." Renji nearly choked- it was exactly what he had wanted to say, but only one person he knew was audacious enough to say it to the face of his staunch captain.

"Shiba Kukaku -dono." Byakuya said coldly. It was her- Kukaku, the pipe-smoking, busty, one-armed force of nature, the "mad bomber", head of the Shiba household. As usual, she wore fairly casual- and scandalously revealing, going by the prudish standards of noble perceptions of decency- red outfit with the Shiba crest, a zanpakutou held in place at her back.

"I heard the central forty-six got its titties in a twist about a simple runaway," she said, grinning, "and I was wondering what is being done about it. She's a good kid."

"I would like to make the audacious proposition that perhaps, if the Kuchiki shall mind business particular to the Kuchiki, the Shiba might mind business particular to the Shiba." Byakuya replied, sounding almost completely emotionless.

"Whatever you say, Byakuya-san." She said, walking by them. "Don't forget she's your sister, though."

Byakuya glared at her- it was subtle, but Renji had learned to tell the difference between a condescending gaze and a glare by now.

"Sheesh, she sure got some nerve," he mumbled. "Her house isn't even that big of a deal anymore."

"Nobility must be given the respect it deserves." Byakuya said, in a tone that Renji had learned meant something along the lines of 'fuck off'.

"Understood, Kuchiki-taicho." Renji quietly said. He had been around his captain for long enough to know that whenever he resorted to this tone, the conversation was just about over. But at the same time, him using this tone meant something else, too; that the situation had gotten him more worked up than it originally seemed.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Very well then! Kurosaki-san, Arisawa-san, Ishida-san, Inoue-san, and of course Yoruichi-san... it is finally time to get started! The day of your grand move against Soul Society has finally come! From now on, it will finally show if you will be the drinking the wine of victory, or if you will be kissing the Gotei's feet in defeat..." Urahara proclaimed proudly.

They all had gathered once more in Urahara's basement in front of a big stone... something. All of their preparations were complete, and all arrangements had been made – the only thing that remained to be done was for them to actually get started.

...Which, if Urahara's speech was anything to go by, might take a while unless somebody interrupted him.

"Cut the speeches already, hat and clogs! You're wasting our time here!" Ichigo shouted, annoyed at the shopkeeper's overly long dialogue.

Urahara gave him an irritated look, which was about the equivalent of an outright mad glare for any normal person. "I am greatly offended, Kurosaki-san. I have been working on this speech for weeks, and you just brush it aside? You do severely lack in appreciation for the fine art of grand speeches."

"Ichigo is right, though, Kisuke. This is hardly the time to be giving speeches." Yoruichi, in her preferred cat form, said. Uryu, Tatsuki, Orihime and Tessai all nodded, and mumbled something to voice their agreement.

"Mutiny! Everybody is turning against me! Oh brave new world, what have you come to?" Urahara exclaimed in an overly dramatic way. "But if you insist, then very well, the speech shall be skipped. Which brings us to..."

"The Senkaimon." Tessai finished the sentence for him.

"That's the gate-thingy that is going to take us to that Soul Society place, right?" Orihime asked in a curious tone.

"Correct! Fifty points to Inoue-san!" Urahara lauded, laughing out loud. "In order to reach the Soul Society, you have to pass through a gate, such as this one. To be one hundred percent correct, though, normally, a Senkaimon can only send souls to the Soul Society – which in our case would present us with a not-so negligible problem, since only Kurosaki-san and Arisawa-san can move around freely as souls, on account of their being shinigami."

"Then how does this particular Senkaimon allow us to pass through it as well?" Uryu asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow.

"Valid question." Tessai nodded. "Basically, this thing changes the things that physically make up your body so that they consist of nothing more than spirit particles, which essentially allows you to move around freely in Soul Society in your original form."

Uryu cupped his chin. "Sounds simple enough..."

"Ah, there's a catch to it, though." Urahara said cheerfully. "Before you actually reach the Soul Society, you have to pass through the Dangai, a dimension between this world, and Soul Society. In order to actually make it through the Dangai, you are only given four minutes. If you don't make it in that time limit, you're trapped forever in the Dangai."

Tatsuki gulped. "And this is the only way?"

"The only one."

"Well, sounds simple enough... we only gotta run like hell, right?" Tatsuki asked.

"Pretty much." Yoruichi answered. "If you are getting cold feet now, then I suggest that you best turn back now. In comparison to what awaits you in Soul Society itself, this is nothing."

Ichigo pulled a big, confident grin. "Just who the hell do you think we are? We already made our decision weeks ago. Some crappy time limit like that isn't going to stop us, let alone change our minds. We are going to do this."

Uryu, Tatsuki and Orihime nodded in agreement.

"Well said, Kurosaki-san! Now, let's get started!" Urahara shouted. Tessai and he positioned themselves to each side of the gate, kneeling down. A moment later, the center of the stone object began to glow with a bright, white light, which grew bigger and bigger, until it was big enough for a person to pass through.

"Come on, let's get going!" Yoruichi shouted once the light reached that point, charging right into it. Ichigo, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime followed the cat, all of them one after another vanishing into the light.

Once the all of them were gone, Urahara and Tessai moved away from the gate. With that which was keeping it active gone, the light quickly got weaker, and soon faded away completely. Even after the light was gone, both Urahara and Tessai silently stared at the gate for a while.

"Well then... I suppose all we can really do now is wait." Tessai broke the silence after a while, before walking away.

Urahara stayed where he was, quietly staring at the gate, the most devious grin on his face. "I have made my move, Sosuke... now let's see what you do on your turn."

* * *

oOo

* * *

They ran. It was dark, and Ichigo wondered how they were running at all, how they weren't running into any walls- but run they did, following Yoruichi's reiatsu. She had taken the lead, and a good thing too- the only thing he could see at all were slight contours, and Ishida's bright white suit.  
Slowly, their eyes adjusted to the dark, and as he looked around, Ichigo saw walls, like in a cave tunnel made by some giant worm. The ground- or whatever it could be called- was at least flat, no pitfalls or pebbles to trip over.

"Hurry!" Yoruichi urged. "We'll be there soon- but don't stop running; we only have two minutes left!"

And before long, they could see a spot of bright, far up the tunnel, slowly growing larger as they ran. Doubling their efforts, the four of them ran, hurrying towards the exit, and soon, they were out.  
And, Ichigo realized, mid-air. Very quickly, it became clear that while the spiritual world didn't quite follow Newtonian physics, gravity was still in place. They fell.

Quickly, Ichigo twisted around so that he came down feet first, knees bent. He charged himself with reiatsu to counteract the impact, and he could see Tatsuki doing the same. Within just seconds, they had landed. Ichigo tumbled over, rolling on the ground, but was more or less unhurt. He got up, seeing Tatsuki standing, and… Orihime, in the arms of Uryu.

"Uh?" He said, getting to his feet.

"Inoue-san seemed lost in the fall, so I took the liberty of ensuring her safe landing." Ishida said dryly- less dryly than usual- putting her down and adjusting his glasses.

"Nice one, Romeo." Ichigo grunted.

"I'd like to point out that because of my intervention, Inoue-san and I landed quite stably, while the two of you barely kept upright." Uryu said, sounding almost angry.

"Thank you, Ishida-kun." Orihime said, almost instantly deflating the situation. "I… I didn't expect that we'd be falling, that's all."

"Erm, er, don't mention it. I have my pride as a quincy." Uryu mumbled.

"Enough babbling." Yoruichi said, casually scratching her ear with her back foot. "Come, follow me. We're going to go visit a friend of mine."

Ichigo looked around himself. They had landed in what appeared to be a small forest... and there was nothing particularly outstanding about this forest, too; it looked just like any other forest in the world of the living. The sky above them looked totally normal, too – it was as if they still were in the world of the living.

"So, this is the afterlife? This all looks a whole lot more like the world of the living than I thought it would..." Ichigo said, following Yoruichi, who was walking a bit ahead of them at a calm pace.

Yoruichi snorted. "What were you expecting? A fluffy cloud heaven, like some religions in the world of the living believe in?"

"No, but..." Ichigo shrugged uncertainly "I don't know, something more dignified, I guess? Something where you immediately think that it's all hunky-dory?"

"Is that so? Well, no such luck." Yoruichi said dismissively. "Now hurry up. If memory serves me right, and we are where I think we are, we still have quite a way to go before we reach Shiba Kukaku's place."

"Shiba Kukaku? Is he that friend that you're taking us to?" Tatsuki inquired.

"That's the one." Yoruichi confirmed.

"What do we need this Kukaku's help for, though?" Uryu interjected, adjusting his glasses.

"I'll explain that once we actually get to Kukaku. Now come on! Less talking, more hurrying! Just because we have two weeks until Rukia's execution, it doesn't mean that we can just waste our time!" Yoruichi shouted, starting to run, forcing Ichigo and the others to run as well in order to keep up with her.

Not a word was spoken after that – everybody was too busy running, and actually keeping up with Yoruichi. Only a few minutes after they started to run, they left the forest, and reached a wide open grass field. Off in the distance, a good bit ahead of them, they could see something that seemed to be a settlement of a sort, which Yoruichi lead them towards. As they got closer to the village – because a village it was – Ichigo could see that that what he originally believed to be small houses were nothing more than small huts. All of them were built with wood, and none of them seemed to even come close to being big enough to be called a house. In fact, within the entire settlement, there was nothing that even began to resemble a house. What the hell?

He grit his teeth as they walked through the small village. This… was below any expectation he had had. People living in squalor, clothed in rags… this was what they had to look forward to after they died?

"Yoruichi-san," he said in a low tone, "is this… what all of the rukongai is like?"

"Some districts are a little better organized, a little wealthier. A few are rich and well supplied. Most districts are… economically challenged." She said, sounding evasive. "A few districts have warlords ruling them, or even nobles. That usually keeps them safe from bandits, but they don't really have what you in the world of the living would call 'rights'."

"And the ones without rulers?"

"Criminal hellholes to one degree or another." Yoruichi said flatly. "Only the strong survive those."

Ichigo kept quiet, and grit his teeth. This… was the afterlife. "What about the Gotei thirteen?"

"They are only interested in mediating the balance between the world- that is, hunting hollows and sending souls on."

"They have all that power, and-"

"This is not the time, Ichigo." Yoruichi said sharply.

Ichigo shut his mouth, walking on in silence. Eventually, Tatsuki walked up beside him.

"You all right?"

"You know, Tatsuki," he said quietly, "the average Japanese citizen isn't going to be rich. Right?"

"Well, yeah. Most people aren't rich."

"But most people, rich or not, they're going to have a house. A job. A family. Some stability. Not having to worry about getting robbed every day, or about putting food on the table. Working hard, getting to eat every day, living decently. That's not unrealistic for your average Japanese."

"I know." She nodded. "This… this is pretty shitty."

"I just thought of my grandparents, you know? I never knew them, but mom told me they were good people- worked hard, got a good retirement… was this what they got? What anyone gets? A place with medieval welfare standards, and no concept of rights?"

"I know." She said, sighing. "I don't feel happy about it either. But if you let yourself get angry about this, you'll be distracted. Get angry about Rukia's unfair execution sentence, and save the starving later, okay?"

"…yeah, I guess you're right." Ichigo said, and they kept walking, following Yoruichi.

"I for one am not surprised." Uryu, who had been walking just behind Ichigo and Tatsuki, added in after about another minute,. "The Gotei Thirteen – there is only so much one seat of power could conceivably do, especially considering how many souls there are to govern."

"So this is… okay with you?" Tatsuki said, raising an eyebrow.

"I made no such statement." Uryu said calmly. "I'm not passing judgment until I know more- not that I expect much compassion from heartless killers like them, though."

"And I think that no matter what it is, there's nothing we can do about it. We can't stop to help these people, even if we want to. We're here to help Kuchiki-san, so we shouldn't be wasting our time, talking about politics stuff." Orihime stated, before Uryu could even say anything.

Ichigo, Tatsuki and Uryu stopped dead in their tracks, and turned around to stare bewilderedly at Orihime, and even Yoruichi stopped walking. "What? Did I say something funny?" Orihime asked, a confused expression on her face.

After a few more seconds of a typically awkward silence, Uryu was the first one to regain his speech. "Uh, no, it's nothing, Inoue-san, really! So, uh, Yoruichi-san, that friend of yours! How much longer is it going to take us to get there?"

"Hmm. Unless I'm quite mistaken, this district here is a good distance away from Kukaku's place... it is going to take us at least another hour." She answered, and once more, Ichigo couldn't help but to notice that her using the form of a cat did give her a distinct advantage in concealing her surprise – if she was even surprised to begin with.

And some time later, after passing through the village, Yoruichi said,

"We're entering Shiba lands. It's not far now."

The landscape around them was surprisingly lush, lots of green fields, trees, a few large rocks here and there, making for a good-looking scenery as they trekked down the dirt road.

"What's this Kukaku like?" Ichigo asked.

"If she is a friend of Yoruichi-san's, and a noble to boot, he must be quite important." Uryu said. "I always wondered what medieval nobility might be like. I suppose we will find out."

"I bet he's a cyborg shark ninja, with a giant hat." Orihime said, fantasizing out loud.

"…does she always do that?" Uryu said.

"Oh, yeah." Tatsuki nodded. "All of the time. It's fascinating what she can think of once you're used to it."

"I think you'll be surprised." Yoruichi remarked dryly, as the five of them began approaching a grandiose estate, built with architecture that Ichigo- going by his flimsy memories from history class- would belong at least six hundred years back in time. It consisted of a large main building, and at least four smaller buildings around it, all painted red. A wall stretched around it, and he could see pens for animals outside of it, and servants and farmers busy at work in and outside the estate. The Shiba clan seemed to be doing well for itself.  
Most notably, at the gates, two humongous pillars stood, stretching a large banner between it, upon which the characters for "SHIBA KUKAKU" were written.

"…he sure must be proud." Ichigo mumbled.

"In his own way." Yoruichi said, sounding mysterious. "This way." She led them down the road, towards the gates. He half expected the guards to try and stop them, or at least ask them their business- but they cast but one glance at the black cat, and quickly seemed to decide that the five of them did not exist, and they all walked into the estate. It was even grander up close- people moving about everywhere, children playing, some better dressed people- clan members, Ichigo guessed- sparring with bamboo swords, led by some ugly man in poofy pants and a bandana.

Yoruichi led them straight to the main house, through the doors and through a set of corridors. They looked in wonder at the house itself- well-made and grand; not everyone was poor here…  
And then Yoruichi stopped before a white sliding door, guarded by two huge, muscular men.

"Ginkaku, Kinkaku." Yoruichi said. "I am here to see Kukaku."

The two men gave them the sort of look that only guards seemed to be capable of: Staring, skeptical, calculating, and silently conveying the not very subtle message of "if you even think about trying anything funny, we are going to divorce you from your limbs". After staring at them for at least a minute, the men then both simultaneously nodded, and then silently opened the door that they were guarding.

Lying behind the door was a lengthy, wide open room, and a person sitting at the end of it... which, as Ichigo and the others noted as they entered the room and got closer, looked distinctively not male – as persons with revealing outfits and cleavages tend to do.

"Yo, Yoruichi! Haven't seen you in a while! How's old hat and clogs doing?" The woman asked in a tone that, as Ichigo could not help but to notice, stood quite in contrast to how Rukia's brother had talked.

"Fine as always, Kuka-" Yoruichi began, only for Tatsuki to take her by the skin of her neck, and lift her in front of her face.

"Oy, Yoruichi..." Tatsuki said, looking a little ticked off. "Didn't you say that Shiba Kukaku was a man? What's up with this now?"

"No one ever said that she was a man. The four of you were just going wild with your assumptions, and I didn't exactly feel like correcting you." Yoruichi stated flatly, and it was pretty obvious that if it had been actually possible for her right now, she would've grinned. "So would you mind putting me down now?"

Giving Yoruichi a look, Tatsuki did what the cat asked her to do. "So, like I was about to say: Urahara is just fine, as always. As a matter of fact, he also is the reason why we are today."

"Ginkaku, Kinkaku! Close the door and make sure that no one disturbs us!" Kukaku quickly ordered the two guards, who immediately obeyed. Once the door was shut once more, she turned to Yoruichi again. "So, these are the kids that came here to prevent Kuchiki Rukia's execution, eh? Interesting bunch... what are your names, kids? And once you're at it, tell me a bit about your powers!"

"I'm Arisawa Tatsuki, a shinigami." Tatsuki said briefly, still a little irritated about being tricked by Yoruichi.

"Well, yeah, I can kinda see that." Kukaku said dismissively. "But what about you, missy?" She asked, pointing at Orihime.

"I'm Inoue Orihime, and I'm a human! But I can use this Fillerthing power, and I want to become a kung-fu robot ninja wizard one day!" Orihime stated cheerfully, herself not in the slightest surprised to find out that Shiba Kukaku is in fact a woman.

Kukaku gave her a bewildered stare. "...Uh-huh, I see..." She nodded slowly, before turning to Uryu. "And what about you, four-eyes? What's your deal?"

"My name is Ishida Uryu, and I am a Quincy – and I would very much prefer it if you refrained from making use of such derogatory terms." Uryu said coldly, readjusting his glasses.

"A Quincy, huh? Coooool... first time I ever actually see one of your kind. For what's ahead, your powers sure could be handy... with you Quincies using spirit particles in your surroundings to attack, being at a place that consists of nothing but those things sure is an advantage, eh?" She laughed loudly, before turning towards Ichigo. "Alright then, that leaves only one of you lot that I don't know the name of yet..."

"My name is Kurosaki Ichigo. I was the one that was turned into a substitute shinigami by Kuchiki Rukia, and now I'm here to prevent her execution."

Kukaku looked at him close, as if seeing him for the first time again, a mildly surprised look on her face. "It looks like we got ourselves a hero, don't we, Yoruichi?" She grinned.

"I'm not a hero-" Ichigo begun to object.

"If it looks like a duck and sounds like a duck, it's probably a duck, innit?" Kukaku said dismissively. "Yoruichi…"

"Yes." Yoruichi said. "This is not the time to be… chattering idly, though."

"Right, right," Kukaku said, scratching her forehead with her pipe. Ichigo was a little surprised- she came more off as a thug of some kind than a clan leader; even the way she talked was decidedly masculine. "Still, heading a rescue operation to get the girl, who is facing a grim and unjust fate, now that sounds like something right out of a boy's adventure book!" She said emphatically, still grinning.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so." Ichigo admitted. "You'll help us, then?"

"I'll help you, yeah." Kukaku nodded.

"Is there a catch?" Uryu asked. "I'd be surprised if there wasn't."

"You're cynical for somebody who ain't even grown up." Kukaku remarked.

"Cynical, or realistic?" He retorted. "We may be young, but we're not dumb. Urahara-san is helping us, and somehow what we're about to do is helping him. So what's your deal?"

"Smart one." Kukaku nodded, snapping her fingers. One of her hulking servants quickly came in, with a small wooden tray with a small sake bottle and a cup. Carefully, she poured herself a drink, and downed it in one gulp. "Let's just say Kisuke's an old friend, and so is Yoruichi. We Shiba value our friends."

"…good enough." Uryu said.

"So how will you help?" Ichigo asked.

"Well, I can think of a few options. My favourite idea involves a giant cannon…."

Ichigo could see Uryu's face twist into a horrified grimace, and Tatsuki looked like she just realized they were dealing with a lunatic. Orihime, somehow unsurprisingly, looked cheerful at the notion.

"That's hardly subtle, is it?" Yoruichi said. "We want to get close to Rukia before there is a ruckus."

"True, true," Kukaku said, casually pouring herself another drink. "I guess it is… well, I could just sneak you in disguised as servants, although I gotta say that's a boring as hell plan."

"You could do that? They wouldn't notice?" Orihime said. "Couldn't they sense, what's it called, our reiatsu?"

"Not if you suppress it. 'Sides, my reiatsu is a lot more noticeable than either of yours. Bein' clan head has its perks."

"That's quite the risk." Uryu remarked. "If you were caught smuggling outsiders…"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head." Kukaku said. "I ain't gonna get caught- they expect eccentric from me in the Gotei; bringing a few servants'll be nothing. And if I get caught- it'll be embarrassing, but being noble, I ain't gonna get punished too bad. Another perk."

"Right." Ichigo said. "That sounds easy enough, I guess."

"Just try to look inconspicuous, and you'll do fine."

"I'd like to have a word with you, Kukaku." Yoruichi said, cutting them off.  
"Right. You kids go do whatever- we leave tomorrow at noon." Kukaku waved at the dismissively. "Shoo now- go on. My idiot brother will show you where you'll sleep, and where the kitchens are if you need a bite to eat."

Dismissed as they were, the four of them headed out of the room, feeling a little lost.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Once they were sure they had all left, Yoruichi transformed, sitting cross-legged opposite of Kukaku. "Sheesh…" she said, stretching. "I'm just not used to this… non-cat form."

"No kidding." Kukaku said, puffing her pipe. "You spent what, a hundred years mostly as a cat?"

"…not a hundred years." Yoruichi said defensively.

"Whatever." Kukaku said. "Have a drink, now that you're back, and tell me what's going on."

"Well," Yoruichi said, pouring herself a small drink, "it's time, Kukaku. At long last."

"You mean…"

"Kisuke set the final set of plans in motion. In a couple of months, everything will happen. When we're done, everything will be different- and Kisuke will stand at the top."

"He always was ambitious…" Kukaku mumbled. "Now, after over a hundred years? I almost thought he had forgotten about his old friends."

"Kisuke never forgets." Yoruichi said matter-of-factly. "Not his friends, and certainly not his enemies. When we're done… we'll achieve all of the things we need."

"You sure sound vague."

"Old habits die hard." Yoruichi said. "I used to be in intelligence- and given where we are, in the house of a clan head, you really never know who may be listening. You know what I am talking about, and that's all I need."

Kukaku nodded slowly. "Yeah… yeah, I do. These kids, though… none of them are even at the level of a fukutaicho. What could they do?"

"Enough." Was all Yoruichi said. They sat quietly for a while, drinking as old friends just reunited.

"That kid…" Kukaku mumbled, finally.

"He is the son of Shiba Isshin." Yoruichi confirmed. "He's your second cousin."

"Damn. Yeah, I could have sworn when I saw him… he looked just like…"

"I know." Yoruichi put an arm on Kukaku's shoulder. "Now's not the time, though, especially since he doesn't know anything about this himself."

"I understand." She looked Yoruichi in the eye, staring intensely. "He'll find out though. If he goes into the courts, he will find out."

"We'll take that when we get there."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Just like everything else that they had seen of the estate so far, the kitchen of the Shiba household turned out to be bigger than any other kitchen that they had ever seen. As they entered it, the entire room was empty, but it was rather easy to imagine about a dozen servants rushing around the place, trying to prepare a meal. Ichigo, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime were simply led to the kitchen after being shown the bedrooms that they were given, and were then left alone.

Since none of them had eaten a thing since arriving at Soul Society (which was already hours ago), they simply took whatever they felt like trying out out of the enormous pantry, which contained more foodstuff than any of them had ever seen in one place in their entire life. Once everyone had taken what they wanted, they sat down at a small table in the corner of the kitchen, and ate, which ended up being a rather silent affair.

"Oy, Ishida..." Ichigo suddenly spoke up, once he finished eating. "Would you mind going another round with me? Sparring, I mean. I just can't stand sitting around like this, doing nothing."

"I don't see why not." Uryu replied, slightly taken aback. "I remember having seen people doing some training in some other rooms – it shouldn't be too hard to find a room that we can use."

Ichigo got up. "Sounds good. Well then... Tatsuki, Orihime, I guess I'll see you two later."

Uryu got up as well, and together, the two left the kitchen, leaving Orihime and Tatsuki alone. Tatsuki had already long since finished, but still stayed with Orihime, who was still eating. That Orihime was still eating while Tatsuki was already done was hardly something new, though – in comparison to her friend, Orihime always had the bigger appetite. At times, Tatsuki would even make a few jokes about how Orihime could eat as much as she wanted without going fat, with everything just going into her boobs.

Just sitting here, eating with Tatsuki... it really got her thinking a bit. "Say, Tatsuki-chan..." Orihime said between two bites "what do you think about this place?"

Tatsuki, seemingly having been somewhere entirely else with her thoughts and without a doubt surprised by how unexpected the question came, blinked a few times and stared at Orihime before responding. "Uh... you mean this estate here? Well, it is pretty fancy, and-"

Orihime slightly shook her head. "No, that's not what I meant... I mean, more like this all. This world, this afterlife."

Tatsuki scratched her head. "Urgh, the things you're asking me... I'm not really sure, actually. I mean, yeah, we have seen this village earlier, and Yoruichi told us some things, but... but there's also these people here, so – I just don't know."

"I know what you mean, Tatsuki-chan." Orihime said with an unusual solemnity. "This place is so beautiful, and the people here at this house all seem to be doing fine, but then there's this village, and the things that Yoruichi said... and somewhere out there is my brother..."

Yes, that was true. Tatsuki hadn't thought about it, but this was the afterlife- and her brother had been purified; he should logically be out there. "Orihime…"

"Oh, I know I shouldn't bother to look for him," Orihime said, putting on a cheerful tone- one that Tatsuki knew was quite false. "I mean, where would I even start? There's billions of souls out there, and I don't have the time, and-"  
She choked up.

Putting an arm around her, rubbing her shoulder, Tatsuki said,

"He's probably doing great. He's a big man- I know he could take care of himself. He's probably got a house of his own by now."

"You think so?" Orihime said, sounding like she might cry. "Because- I, I don't want him to live like, like these poor people-"

"He's strong. He looked after you all by himself for all those years- I think he can look after himself. And he's probably got reiatsu, too, if he used to be a hollow." She honestly wasn't sure that was how it worked, but that was beside the point. Orihime needed comfort now, not pros and cons.

"I hope so." Orihime said, her voice stabilizing. "Sorry, Tatsuki-chan… I don't know what came over me. I thought I had moved on…"

"Don't sweat it." Tatsuki said affectionately. "I'm here- what are friends for? It's perfectly natural to worry for him, that doesn't make you weak."

"Thank you, Tatsuki-chan." She smiled slightly. "I wonder… I wonder if I could find him once we've rescued Rukia-chan."

"I'd help you look." Tatsuki nodded enthusiastically, inwardly shuddering at the thought of searching the whole of the soul society. "For now, eat up. We got a big day tomorrow."

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Alright, I'd say that's enough for now." Ichigo declared, having just finished another sparring round with Uryu. In order to save themselves the trouble of having to search for a room to use, Ichigo and Uryu had ultimately decided to just train out on the estate's grounds, in the area where they had seen people practice with bamboo swords.

The sparring matches themselves went about as Ichigo expected them to go: Uryu won the vast majority of them, with Ichigo managing to score the occasional draw, and even a few victories. Said victories could however mostly be attributed to one thing: The fact that Uryu had yet to adjust to fighting in Soul Society. Since Uryu, as a Quincy, used spirit particles to attack, being in a world that entirely consisted of them meant that he had a lot more energy to work with – which in turn made it hard for him to get the strength of his attacks right, causing some unfortunate mishaps during their sparring matches.

After a couple of sparring matches, however, Uryu had more or less adjusted himself, and started a winning streak against Ichigo that did not end.

"Very well then." Uryu said, letting his energy bow vanish. "You really have improved since our first match, though, Kurosaki."

"Eh? What's gotten into you, Ishida? I thought you weren't trying to become all friendly with me?" Ichigo snorted.

"Same to you. You've known me for little over a month now – so why ask me for a sparring match, instead of your childhood friend, Arisawa san?" Uryu adjusted his glasses. "I do mean what I said, though. In comparison to how strong you were in our first match, you really have come quite a long way."

"Let's just hope that that's enough to not get slaughtered by the first shinigami that we come across..." Ichigo grunted. "Anyway, I think it's about time we get back to the others... I'm really getting quite hungry here."

"I'll have to pass on that." Uryu rejected. "I've had my fill earlier. I think I will just go to sleep."

Ichigo shrugged, sheathing Zangetsu. "Fine then. Have fun with that."

Without another word, Uryu turned around and walked back towards the house, leaving Ichigo standing alone on the grounds lit by the last light of the setting sun.

With him gone, Ichigo simply took a seat on a nearby rock, leaning his back against it. He was sweating, and his muscles ached. Training in the soul society was different- it was a little like moving in tar, wasn't it? It had to be the spiritual pressure- everything here was made up of spiritual matter. Back in the world of the living, his reiatsu could push everything around; here it had to adjust to the spiritual matter around it.

Surprised at himself at his analysis- he'd have to double check it with Uryu; he'd know better- he smiled.

"They do have benches, you know." It was Tatsuki, out walking in the twilight.

"Real men sit uncomfortably." He said, grinning and wiping some sweat from his brow.

"You're not a great comedian, you know." Tatsuki sighed. She concentrated some reiatsu at her feet, and in one big leap, she jumped up to the top of the rock- nearly ten feet, he'd have to guess.

"You came a long way, you really did." Ichigo remarked. "I never said it before, but I'm kind of impressed."

"Yeah, yeah," Tatsuki grumbled. "Enjoy your uncomfortable seat, why don't you?"

"Hey…" he said, looking up at her. She looked good, he noticed- the shihakusho fit her well, and the sinking sun illuminated her features- muscles, nice proportions… "about back then. You know, when we first fought."

"You mean when we were five and I kicked your ass?"

"Don't be a smartass. I mean a couple weeks back. You were angry with me then, weren't you?"

"So what if I were? That was then and this is now."

"I think you should tell me why." He said somberly. "I think I could guess, but I want to hear it from you."

"God Ichigo, you're such a fucking girl…" She shook her head, looking like she was in between laughing and grumbling. "Yeah, I was mad. I wanted to turn your face to paste. I didn't, 'cause we're friends- but I wanted to."

"Because I left you out."

"Because you always act like some big macho idiot about things like these!" She snapped. "It's not like we weren't involved- but you took Orihime's memories, and you would have taken mine too if you could!"

"Yeah…" he said, not sure how to reply. She was right.

"You're not alone, dumbass." She said, almost angrily. "That's the point of having friends."

"And friendship is magic, right?"

"Don't dick around!" She snapped, kicking him in the head. "You locked me out- me, your oldest friend! And that alone doesn't piss me off so much as the fact that you kept risking your life alone, barely knowing what you were doing! If it weren't for Urahara-san, you really would be dead now, and then how would your mother feel?"

"…" He remained silent for a while. "I… I'm sorry."

"Damn right." She shook her head. "I'm not even mad anymore- but you've got to promise me to stop being stupid. Stop buying into this 'I'm a big strong man who don't need help' mentality. Fight _with_ us, not _for_ us. Can you do that?"

"…yeah. Yeah, I can."

"Good. That's all I needed to hear." She stood up. "We're supposed to be a team. Even Ishida-san is trying, even though he doesn't know much about working with people. Orihime can't fight properly, and has no real experience, but she stands with us. So you do the same for us. You must do that, you hear? I want us to live."

"I will!" He snapped. "I get the message- I'll think about… all of these things, okay?"

"Good." She charged reiatsu to her feet, jumping down again. "That's all I needed to know. Good night- I'm going to bed."

And promptly, she walked away. Shaking his head, Ichigo muttered something incoherent. Freaking lectures…  
After a few minutes of thinking, he got up, and headed back to the house, hopefully to find a shower.

* * *

A good distance away from the Shiba clan's estate, in the very center of Soul Society, the seireitei, head Captain Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryusai stared out into the distance from his office's window. As the leader of the Soul Society's only military force, every day brought him a great deal of paperwork, and he was far from being done with today's load. Keeping his old age in mind, breaks such as this one were often enough a necessity. For over one thousand years now, Yamamoto had been the head captain of the Gotei Thirteen, and while all shinigami had a much higher life expectancy than a living human being, or even a soul for that matter, it was still an incredible age. While being a shinigami did have the benefit of not having to worry about diseases of physical or mental nature, aging still came with the noticeable loss of one's health, of which the necessity for breaks during work was just one aspect.

It was during this particular break that Sasakibe Choujiro, Yamamoto's fukutaicho- the vice-captain of squad one- entered the office, holding in his hands what seemed to be a report of some sort. "I hope that I am not disturbing you, soutaichou?"

"Hardly. I was just taking a break." The old man said, averting his gaze from the window, and turning towards his subordinate. "So what is the matter, Sasakibe? Can this report not wait until tomorrow?"

Sasakibe shook his head lightly. "I'm afraid that it can't wait, soutaichou. This report just came in from squad twelve. They have detected an anomaly within the western parts of the Rukongai, something akin to a Senkaimon being opened."

Yamamoto raised his eyebrow, giving his fukutaicho a questioning look. "So? This is hardly noteworthy. Hollows, no matter their strength, cannot open a Senkaimon – as such, this is at worst only the result of a shinigami returning from the world of the living at an unusual place. Dismiss it, and tell Mayuri to not waste my time with these trivial matters."

"Understood, soutaichou." Sasakibe said, nodding stoically. He then turned around and left the room, leaving Yamamoto to overlook the darkening seireitei once more.

* * *

Author's Notes:  
And thus begins the Soul Society arc, which in turn means that we are getting to the point where our plotline here will completely branch off from canon!

* * *

**Warning: The following omake makes fun of both the canon Bleach, as well as Naruto, while praising One Piece. If that's not your sort of thing... well, tough luck.**

"Hurry!" Yoruichi urged. "We'll be there soon- but don't stop running; we only have two minutes left!"

And before long, they could see a spot of bright, far up the tunnel, slowly growing larger as they ran. Doubling their efforts, the four of them ran, hurrying towards the exit, and soon... they all crashed into something at the same time, which is hardly among the things that are to be expected when you run into a portal-thing.

Wondering just what the hell just happened, Ichigo got up. And so did Ichigo. And Uryu, as well Uryu. Not to mention, Orihime and Orihime. And of course, Tatsuki and Chad.

For whatever reason, Ichigo suddenly stared into his own fifteen-year old face – which was quite easy to tell, since on the day of his sixteenth birthday, Keigo had stabbed Ichigo's left eye out with a rusty dagger, leaving him to wear an eye patch ever since, which so far was just way too unimportant to ever be mentioned in the plot. Details.

"Damn!" Tatsuki exclaimed, being the first one to regain her speech. "I must've hit my head harder than I thought... I'm seeing four Ichigos!"

"Hoooly shit! There's another us over there! Well, except for Chad, but that's not important!" The younger Ichigo said, with a hyperactivity befitting of a squirrel. "How can this be?!"

One totally unimportant introduction sequence later, everybody knew everything about what was going on with the other group, and what they were doing. Truly, something completely unimportant that does not deserve to be told in any way, shape or form.

"Sooo, let me get this straight." The older Ichigo said. "You are from this alternate universe to ours called 'canon', and you're also on your way to Soul Society, to rescue Rukia... and in your universe, my father is still alive, and my mother is dead?"

The younger Ichigo nodded violently. Very violently. Violently enough, in fact, to repeatedly head-butt the younger Uryu, who just so happened to be standing in front of him. "That's how it is! And you're from this alternate universe called 'Agtor', where my mother is still alive, and my father is dead?"

"Uh, yeah. That's what I just finished explaining to you off-screen." The older Ichigo noted quite dryly. "But anyway, now you've got me curious! How exactly did you end up in this situation? Did your sister die as well, making you realize that being a shinigami is not something that a living person should do, which in turn caused you to get into an argument with Rukia, which then in turn caused you to let her go willingly when her brother came to retrieve her?"

"Huh? Hell no! Nobody died! It was a normal day, like all the others! I was hunting hollows and stuff, when a couple of guys who were up to no good started making trouble in my neighborhood, attacking Rukia! So I got into one little fight, and Rukia got scared, and left with them willingly!" The younger Ichigo explained, starting to sing halfway through his exposition for no apparent reason.

The older Ichigo meanwhile, simply stared at his younger counterpart in disbelief with his one eye. "...You attacked those two."

"Of course! How else should I have solved this? Talk to them? Everybody knows that that never works, unless you fight them before!"

"...so you charged in recklessly, and attacked two opponents who were obviously infinitely stronger than you, and you had just about no chance of actually defeating them." The older Ichigo stated more than he asked, his expression already reaching a point of absolute despair.

"Well, yeah. This is how I always do things!" The younger Ichigo quite cheerfully confirmed, as if it were the most natural thing in the world – which for him, as a matter of fact, it was.

"DIDN'T ISHIDA AT LEAST TRY TO WARN YOU, YOU GOD DAMNED IDIOT?!" The older Ichigo roared, bringing his younger counterpart close to tears – if only for a few seconds.

"Nope! Ishida was already defeated by the time I got there. No surprise there, though. I mean, he is waaaay weaker than me!" The younger Ichigo proclaimed proudly.

"Actually..." The older Uryu interjected. "Out of our group, I'm the strongest."

"And I'm the second strongest." Tatsuki added in.

"And I'm absolutely okay with it." The older Ichigo finished.

Within the next couple of seconds, one could easily observe the beautiful process of a person's world view being completely shattered in the face the younger Ichigo, as he collapsed onto the floor, and got into a fetal position, whimpering something along the lines of "I'm the number one... I'm the number one...".

Looking down on his best friend 5ever in sympathy, Chad opened his mouth to say something... only to be interrupted by the younger Ichigo instantly recovering from his severe trauma, completely and conveniently saving him from the need to consult a therapist. "You're right, Chad! I can't let this get to me! After all, I am the protagonist, and the most important person in the story!"

"Oh hey, Chad." The older Ichigo said, just now noticing him. "You're gonna tragically die in a car accident in a couple of years."

Chad frowned, and once again attempted to say something – only to be once more interrupted, this time by the older Uryu. "Well, it's only your fault, really. I mean, you had every opportunity to be an interesting character, and you just about wasted it."

This time, Chad didn't even bother to try and say something, as the younger Uryu spoke up. "Interesting characters, huh? I suppose that does account for Arisawa-san being with you... but am I the only one who's noticing that me and Inoue-san are the only ones that are mostly the most similar to our counterparts?"

Everyone turned to the two Orihimes, who had a fierce discussion about the weaponry that their future robotic self should have. "There actually is a difference between us, my younger counterpart." The older Uryu noted. "It is called screentime."

Instantly, the younger Ichigo, the younger Uryu and Chad moved into the nearest corner, wrapping their arms around their knees to sulk like they had never done before in their entire lives – which was quite the accomplishment, since the Dangai had very little to offer in terms of corners.

"Y'know Ichigo, your counterpart there really is kind of an irrational prick." Tatsuki said.

"I noticed." The older Ichigo frowned. "Say, would it count as suicide if I were to brutally murder him?"

Before Tatsuki, or anybody else for that matter (except for Chad) could however even ponder about the older Ichigo's deeply philosophical question, a bright light shone down from the Dangai's ceiling (or whatever you could call it), and a young man in a bright orange costume and blonde hair descended while shouting. Loudly. "THIS IS NOW A CROSSOVER WITH BESTEST, GREATEST, AND MOST WELL-WRITTEN ANIME SERIES EVAR, NARUTO! BELIEVE IT, MOTHERFUCKERS!"

Everyone stared at the 'ninja', disbelief written all over their faces... literally, since the two Yoruichis had somehow found permanent markers, and didn't like being ignored.

Naruto meanwhile had made his way to the younger Ichigo, and offered him his hand. "HELLO CANON ICHIGO! YOU ARE NOW MY BESTEST FRIEND FOREVER AND EVER, AND TOGETHER WE WILL DEFEAT EVERY VILLAIN THAT WE COME ACROSS BECAUSE WE ARE SO POWERFUL AND SMART AND SKILLFUL AND SEXY AND WE WILL BE EATING RAMEN!"

The younger Ichigo covered his ears. "What the eff, man... could you try not to shout for once? ...Though this does sound like a wonderful offer."

The blonde 'ninja' gave his new bestest friend forever and ever a confused look. "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? THIS IS MY NORMAL SPEAKING VOICE!"

"And this is about as good as either of you will get as characters. He's ninja Jesus, you're shinigami Jesus. Have fun being one dimensional." The older Ichigo noted dryly, hoping that this entire mess would be finally over now.

Which it quite obviously wasn't.

"Gomu gomu no... crotch punch!" Another voice came from some place sort of far away, and almost instantly, two fists flew towards two particularly hurtful places for both the younger Ichigo and Naruto, who collapsed due to the pain.

"Argh! That's weird, I was punched and it actually hurt!" The younger Ichigo moaned, as Naruto groaned, "MY BALLS! MY ONE WEAKNESS! HOW DID YOU KNOW?!".

"Hey there, you three!" The source of the rather surprising, but quite appreciated attacks said, a young man dressed in a red vest, blue shorts and a straw hat that walked up to the younger Uryu, the younger Orihime and Chad. "The name's Monkey D Luffy! I hear you need a main character that doesn't become stupidly overpowered in comparison to his supposed friends, doesn't godmod to the point of being the strongest character in the entire story, and actually cares about his friends and shares his screentime with them?"

To say that the eyes of the three addressed ones were filled with glee would have been an understatement.  
"Screentime?" Chad asked.  
"We would actually win battles?" The younger Uryu added.  
"Actually caring about us?" The younger Orihime questioned.  
For a moment, the three looked at each other, as if to silently discuss the matter. Then-  
"We're in!"

"Yosh!" Luffy said, with a big grin, kicking the younger Ichigo and Naruto off-screen. "Let's go, new nakama! Off to become the king of the samurai!"

"Shinigami." The younger Uryu corrected, as the canon group headed off with their new and improved protagonist.

"We'll just pretend this never happened, alright?" The older Ichigo asked, after they had stared after the other group for a while. The response was four simultaneous nods.

Meanwhile, in another world, the younger Ichigo and Naruto came to their senses.

"Where are we?" The younger Ichigo asked, looking around, just as a man with a bright orange costume, and _spiky_ blonde hair flew by them, shouting something along the lines of "...hameha!".

"IN THE PLACE OF OUR DREAMS, MY FRIEND... IN THE PLACE OF OUR DREAMS! BELIEVE IT, DATTEBAYO!"


	13. One does not simply walk into a castle

**Author's Notes:**

You know, by now I am mildly surprised that no one has ever commented on the admittedly fairly weird chapter titles. I know that I myself sure would have.

* * *

The next day, they were all woken up early, gently but very firmly by Kukaku's hulking manservants. After a quick breakfast, the four of them were ushered out to the front of the main house, where Kukaku and Yoruichi were waiting. The sun was up, and the place was bustling with activity. Kukaku was out, shouting orders, giving instructions to the servants. She was wearing something slightly more dignified-clan-leader-looking, although not without cleavage, Ichigo noticed.

"There you lot are!" She said enthusiastically when she finally saw them. "Come on, this way- no time to lose!" She marched on, and the four of them straggled after her, barely awake as they were. She led them to a small barracks at the side of the house; a storage area, judging by its appearance. Kukaku rummaged through some crates- noticeably efficient rummaging for a person with only one arm- muttering and pulling out clothing here and there, occasionally flinging some undesirable garment aside. Finally, she had produced a pile of garishly colourful clothes.

"You," she said, pointing to Uryu, "you wear this." She handed him a stiff brown kimono, practical but well made. "You'll pass as my, whatsitcalled, accountant. I'm here on business, so having somebody along to keep score'll make sense. You look like a real egghead, too- you'll do fine."

"….thanks." Uryu said, inspecting the kimono.

"Here, take this ledger too, just to make it convincing." Kukaku chucked a heavy tome at him, and he just barely caught it, nearly toppling under its weight. This might be frustrating…

"You, hime girl." She said, pointing to Orihime. "You'll wear this." She handed her a colourful kimono, using the white and red patterns of the Shiba clan, with a bit of yellow lining thrown in.

"It's so cute!" Orihime cheered, inspecting the kimono, spinning it around.

"You'll be acting like my maidservant. Think you can do that?"

"But of course, Kukaku-sama," Orihime said gently, curtseying. "Whatever mistress requires."

Kukaku gave a whistle. "Looks like we got ourselves an actor. Good."

"Now let's hope the rest of you can act." Yoruichi cut in. "This plan must not fail- so listen closely to what she has to say. If you fail here, we will have to use plan B, and that… is the giant cannon."

"I don't mind that idea at all," Kukaku said, grinning, "but playing dress-up was more fun than I thought. "You two." She pointed at Ichigo and Tatsuki, "you look kind of suspicious, so I'm just going to have you wear these." She handed them large, brown, hooded kimono, with stripes of white woven into the fabric. "It's usually worn by the servants of nobles who want extra carrying power- swords, books, or just shopping. It's the kind of dress that's meant to be anonymous- like you don't even exist. It's dehumanizing and I don't like to use it, but it's perfect for the two of you. All the two of you have to do is stay dead quiet and carry my stuff. Can you try and do that?"

"What, you think we can't act?" Tatsuki grumbled.

"Yeah, that's… I mean, you haven't even seen us try." Ichigo said.

"Dearies, the two of you are about as subtle as a thunderbolt. You both look like you want to punch something, _all the time_, and that's no good. Ichigo, did you know your face is stuck in a permanent frown?"

"…it's not permanent." Ichigo mumbled.

"We don't have time for a crash course in acting, so faceless carriers it is. Do you know how to suppress your reiatsu some?"

"We learned enough from Urahara-san." Tatsuki confirmed.

"Good. Try not to exude that killer intent, and you should be good."

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Yoruichi remarked, sounding smug.

"It's like when I was a little girl, playing with dolls." Kukaku grinned.

Uryu grimaced. This would be a long trek… "So what exactly is our plan now?" He asked, trying to distract himself from the Shiba clan head's madness.

"Oh yes, good thing that you mention that, four-eyes."

"I told you to not call me that..." Uryu grumbled, which however was lost on Kukaku.

"The plan is really quite simple." She began to explain, grinning. "We just walk into the center of Soul Society, the seireitei, get you as close to the place where they are keeping Rukia. Then we make sure that no one is around, and then you all go the rest of the way by yourselves."

"So you're not coming with us." Ichigo stated more than he asked.

"'Course not!" Kukaku exclaimed with exaggerated surprise. "You lot are the daring heroes that rescue the poor maiden from certain death, not me! I'm just the awesome person that helps you a bit along the way. That I put my own life into danger never was a part of the job description."

"Well, that much was to be expected." Uryu noted dryly.

"Whatever, four-eyes. So, do any of the heroes have any more questions?" She looked around, only to be met with silence from Ichigo, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime. "Good! Then I say you go and put your disguises on, and then we'll get going! We have quite a way to go before we even get to the seireitei!"

One after another, the four of them entered the barracks to change their clothes, until all of them were in their disguises. While Uryu and Orihime barely had any problems with their disguises, the disguises for Ichigo and Tatsuki turned out to be every bit as uncomfortable and impractical as they seemed to be, though neither of them voiced their concerns out of fear that Kukaku might dig up something even worse instead.

"Ha, seems like I have made the right choices with your costumes – these things fit you all perfectly! Maybe I really should hire you as servants in the case that you live through all of this!" Kukaku laughed once all of them were disguised and lined up.

"Don't even think about it..." Tatsuki said under her breath, just now noticing an advantage of her disguise's hood- Kukaku couldn't see the glares Tatsuki gave her.

"Kukaku..." Yoruichi spoke up, sitting down next to her "Didn't you say that we should get going now?"

The Shiba clan head sighed. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Well then you lot, let's get going! Off to the seireitei."

* * *

And so, the merry band- not so merry in the case of Ichigo and Tatsuki- set out a-walking across the countryside, headed towards the Gotei thirteen. Kukaku, in a display of excessive nobility, had decided to eschew walking in favour of a horse-drawn carriage- apparently there were horses in the afterlife too, and two of them were pulling her luxurious cart, filled with cushions, and even a simple roof. Orihime had gotten a seat, since she was supposed to be Kukaku's aide, but the rest of them had to walk alongside them. There was something infuriating about this woman, Ichigo concluded, but he couldn't quite make himself feel angry. She was helping them, after all, and for no apparent cost.

As the landscape passed by them, slowly changing from wood, fields and hills to plains as they came closer to the seireitei, Ichigo began thinking about what was ahead of them. What would they face? Would all of them be as frighteningly strong as Rukia's brother? Feeling worried, he voiced his concerns.

"You know… we don't actually know much about the Gotei thirteen. Shouldn't somebody have told us more by now?"

"Good of you to ask." Kukaku said, lying back, smoking her pipe. "Yoruichi, this is all yours."

"Fine." She said, once again in cat form, comfortably riding the carriage. "You'll be entering a military complex. There are ways around it, but chances are that out of disguise, there will be a trained soldier watching you and making questions- and they're the kind to stab first and ask questions later."

"How strong are they?" Tatsuki asked.

"The lot of you, not counting Orihime, will most definitely be stronger than the average soldier- but those are the least of your worries." Yoruichi said, sounding hesitant. "Whatever their capabilities and organization, the greatest assets they have are and will always be their thirteen captains."

"Are they all as bad as that Byakuya guy?" Ichigo wondered.

"You saw only a fraction of his power," Yoruichi said, her tone sharp, "and yes, most of them are about that level. If you encounter a captain, _run_. No questions, no objections- run away. You cannot under any circumstances fight them. You might as well try to turn back the tides, topple a mountain or make water run uphill. It's out of your league."

"…they're really that monstrous?" Tatsuki said, looking almost… anxious.

"To make it simple, imagine that each captain is a walking nuke." Yoruichi said flatly. "And you are Hiroshima."

That got the message across fairly well.

"So… we must avoid them, then." Uryu said quietly.

"Yes. We need to infiltrate carefully, and avoid them as long as possible. If you are discovered, run. If you cannot run, fight until you can. Understood?"

"…yes, ma'am." Ichigo said at last. What had they gotten themselves into?

Their journey from that point on was mostly a silent one. As they got closer to the seireitei, the villages and settlements that they passed through or by became progressively more organized and, from the looks of it, more wealthy- so at the very least, there really were places where the conditions seemed to be better than the village that they first passed through...  
The various settlements were all full of activity, and people going after their own business – as it seemed, even in the afterlife, people were not safe from having to work for a living (if their existence in the afterlife could even be called living). Even so, none of the people that they passed by seemed to really be bothered or surprised by them: They all moved out of the way whenever they were standing in it, gave Kukaku, and sometimes Ichigo and the others some quick looks, but nothing more. The people seemed to be completely subservient to nobility... or anything that even seemed a little noble.

After they passed through at least the tenth settlement that they came across, Ichigo began to wonder about something else. "Say, how exactly is this entire Rukongai structured? It seems like the closer we get to the seireitei, the more organized everything seems to get here."

"This one's yours, Kukaku." Yoruichi noted, lying down next to Orihime, who was stroking her.

"Argh, jeez... you'd think that the big, good hero would be a bit too nervous than to ask his benefactor annoying questions." Kukaku let out a playfully annoyed sigh. "But yeah, you're actually not too far off from how this all really is. The seireitei is basically the big center, where all the big shots like the shinigami and their thirteen squads and all the big important noble houses are. Everything around the seireitei is the Rukongai, where the normal civilians and the less important noble houses are. The Rukongai is divided into four big main parts, north, east, south and west, based on which side of the seireitei they lie. These four parts in turn are divided into eighty numbered districts each. Basically, the higher-ranking the number, the better the conditions, and the closer to the center the district. We started from about district seventeen in the west Rukongai, and are by now in about the area of ten. That good enough for ya, hero?"

"Uh, yeah. I think." Ichigo said, kind of reluctantly, given the unexpectedly detailed information he received.

"Good. Just so you know, I'd like it if you kept your mouth shut now. We're gonna be there soon, and I want to enjoy the weather some more while I still can."

"...Understood."

Just as he had been asked to, Ichigo remained silent from that point on, and instead looked around his surroundings some more, hoping to get his first look at the seireitei soon. And sure enough, just a few minutes after the Shiba clan head had finished her explanation, their path took them to the top of a hill, from where they could finally see the seireitei.

From the looks of it, the seireitei was an enormous, traditional Japanese castle. While they were still a good bit away from it, Ichigo could already see that it was bigger than any city that he had ever seen with his own eyes, stretching well beyond the horizon, and far to the left and right of his view field. In what seemed to be the very center of the seireitei, there stood a large wide tower surrounded by a few smaller towers, and standing next to a hill that might as well have been big enough to be called a small mountain. Surrounding the entire complex was a seemingly circular, white wall, taller than most of the buildings inside.

Ichigo, Tatsuki and Uryu stopped in their tracks, staring in awe at the view. _This_ was the enemy's base?

"Hey you three! We got no time for standing around to enjoy the view!" Kukaku's voice snapped them out of their thoughts.

"So, this is the seireitei?" Tatsuki asked as they hurried after the carriage.

"What else should it be? Candy mountain?" Kukaku asked, rolling her eyes. "Seriously, grumpy girl, this could hardly be more obvious. Though it is kinda surprising that they're having the walls down..."

"What do you mean by that?" Uryu asked, readjusting his glasses.

Kukaku cupped her chin. "Usually, they're keeping the walls up – don't ask me how – and only bring them down if there's any sort of danger or crisis. If they're having the walls down, it must mean that they're worried about something... and it also means that we'll have to pass through one of the gates."

"And that's not good?" Orihime asked curiously.

"Eh, it's not that bad. My status as noble should be more than enough to get us past the morons that they're having guard the gates." Kukaku dismissed Orihime's question. "Though it is kinda inconvenient, yeah... but whatever, we'll manage."

* * *

About another hour (which felt like an eternity to Ichigo) later, they finally got close to the west gate of the seireitei. From up close, the walls were even more impressive to look at than they were from off in the distance: The walls were at least sixty feet high, and seemed to be built absolutely seamless.

And that wasn't even mentioning the guardian.

"Wooow... this guy is huge! Is he even human?" Orihime asked under her breath as they approached the gate, where an extremely large and muscular man stood – and he wasn't just large by normal human standards. The man stood at least thirty feet in height, almost ten meters.

"That's Jidanbo, one of the four gatekeepers." Yoruichi quietly explained, being the only one that heard Orihime's remark. "He's a splatter – a little like a bouncer in the world of the living, except that Jidanbo uses more force."

Tatsuki swallowed. "Giants? They have _giants_?"

"Only four." Kukaku said dismissively, as they began approaching the gargantuan man.

"He looks kind of cool, you know," Orihime said cheerily, "just look at his axe!"

"Axes that size aren't cool!" Ichigo said. "They're instruments of murdering the hell out of you!"

"Shut it, you lot." Kukaku said, keeping calm. "Oy, Jidanbo!" She called, loudly and cheerfully, "let us through, ya big dumb ape!" She grinned. Ichigo felt a sinking feeling- she was insulting him? Really?

"Shiba-sama." The giant rumbled. "What's yer business?"

"My own." Kukaku said. "What, did this 'clan head' thing pass you by? Let me in already."

"Special orders." Jidanbo rumbled. "There's a drill on- can't let outsiders through right now."

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!" Kukaku shot back loudly. "I get up early, endure this horrible carriage ride here-" Ichigo grumbled; she wasn't the one walking- "and you tell me I have to go back?"

"Well…" Jidanbo said, "what you here for?"

Kukaku snapped her fingers. "Tsuhabi, step up." She pointed at Uryu. "This is my accountant- we're here to do some boring trades negotiations. Tell 'em all about it, boy."

Uryu, looking befuddled, stepped up. He held up the ledger, opened his mouth, and… kept quiet.

"Well?" The giant rumbled.

"Well!" Uryu snapped, improvising, "as I have told Shiba Kukaku-sama a million times by now, growing rice is simply not feasible in these times, with the economy as unstable as it is."

Ichigo felt baffled. Uryu had put on a nasal, entirely obnoxious voice, managing to sound grating and dry at the same time.

"The economy?" Jidanbo said.

"Oh, I wouldn't expect the soldiery to understand the subtlety of how trade flows and its effects on society," Uryu said, condescendingly, "but we are here to discuss the purchase of a small lot of land for the experimental growing of grain. As I have told oyakata-sama a million times, grain is more nutritious and cost efficient than rice-"

"And as I told you a million times, our ground ain't good for grain!" Kukaku shot back, sounding angry, but Ichigo could see a glimmer in her eye.

"Please, oyakata-sama," Uryu said, "I am trying to explain our business. Now, as I was saying, we will need to buy at least two acres of land, along with five sacks of grain, and we will also have to hire a greater work force-" it was amazing how he could drone on, Ichigo thought, sounding exactly like he could talk for hours about the most boring stuff imaginable, "-and this, you see, will require extensive negotiations with several noble clans, and this of course will take up a lot of our time. Of course, rice does supply us with the food we need, but in these times grain is the future and-"

"All right, all right." Jidanbo said, sounding bewildered. "Trade, was it? I'll open the gate for you." Slowly, the giant turned around, and lifted a part of the giant wall, his muscles flexing and straining under its massive weight. "You may pass, Shiba-sama," he managed, his voice strained.

"Good sport, Jidanbo," Kukaku said. "You lot, keep up." The horses moved forward, and so did Ichigo, Uryu, Tatsuki and Orihime. The Gotei Thirtenn was just before them.

And just as they passed the gate, they felt it- even Orihime, whose sensing was the weakest. Power. Overwhelming power, restrained but present.

"Shit." Kukaku muttered. "Let me handle this one. You four, keep your mouth shut."

For a moment, they headed onwards as if there was nothing wrong – though that was easier said than done, with this almost choking power approaching them. Then, after another few seconds, which felt longer to Ichigo than their entire trip here, a man came around a nearby corner.

The man was wearing the exact same uniform as Kuchiki Byakuya had: The black shinigami robes, coupled with a white haori, making it clear that they were dealing with another captain. He had silver white hair, and was, for whatever reason, keeping his eyes narrowed to the point of them being slits. From the looks of it, he was much leaner built than Byakuya. It was quite obvious that this man was the source of this crushing feeling of power... which wasn't the main reason as to why the man's appearance unsettled Ichigo and the others so much. No, what really moved this guy out of the 'dangerous' territory and right into the 'why aren't we already running away' territory was his expression: A simple smile. A simple, mocking, and creepily unsettling smile.

"Yo, Gin-san! What brings you here?" Kukaku asked, seemingly not disturbed in the slightest by the man's – well, everything.

"Oh, nothing in particular, Shiba Kukaku... I was just out to get myself some strawberry milk, y'see." The man – Gin replied, with a cheerfulness that was reminiscent of Urahara, but at the same time, more off-putting than Urahara could ever hope to be. "I should be askin' you the same thing, though-what brings ya here, with servants and a carriage, no less?"

"Eh, just some trade negotiations with some other noble houses, that sorta boring stuff. I figured that I might as well go out a little once I'm already at this, so I brought a few of my servants with me." She pointed to Ichigo and Tatsuki – which accomplished the one thing that Ichigo and Tatsuki wanted to avoid the most right now: Attracting Gin's attention. Mockingly slow, the captain walked over to Ichigo and Tatsuki. For the first time since putting their disguises on, Ichigo and Tatsuki were outright glad to be wearing them. Their hoods perfectly obscured them almost losing their composure, quite unlike Uryu and Orihime, who put on an excellent act.

"Didn't know that ya actually had servants around that ya forced into this kinda outfit. I thought ya disliked these things?" Gin asked, once he stood right in front of Ichigo and Tatsuki – way closer than what was comfortable.

"Believe me, these ugly mugs deserve to be hidden, you snake." Kukaku remarked nonchalantly. "Is that all that you want to know, then? We're kinda in a hurry, y'see."

"A hurry, huh?" Gin wondered, _finally_ averting his gaze from them. "Well, then I suppose I shouldn't be wasting more of yer time. A captain really shouldn't be wasting his time, either... I will see ya around, Shiba-san."

He casually walked off, and the carriage continued its way. The further they got away from the captain, the weaker the pressure that they felt got, until it was ultimately barely notable.

"Gah, what the _hell_ was up with that guy?!" Tatsuki burst out after a short while. "That absurd amount of power, and this constant grinning! Urgh!"

"That was Ichimaru Gin, one of the thirteen captains." Kukaku said calmly. "That guy's just a big creep... we can count ourselves lucky that he bought our excuse. Just so you know, ol' Gin's far from the strongest captain of the Gotei – that should really give you a good idea of what you're in for."

Ichigo felt chilled to the spine, like something had reached into his very bones and gleefully molested them without so much as using a condom. This was one of their lesser fighters? This man, who had looked so creepy- no, creepy would be the understatement of the century. He had felt like a malicious monster, ready to pounce whenever he felt like it, only putting on a show of civility.

"That guy…" he mumbled.

"Gin's a right bastard," Kukaku said, "and everyone knows it. The little fucker is a hell of a killer, and that's really all the Gotei looks for in a captain. They talk about duty, honour and protection, but if they were really decent people, they wouldn't be employing people like him."

"So the shinigami forces have people like him in charge." Uryu said in a neutral tone. "Somehow, I find myself unsurprised."

"Don't go making conclusions." Kukaku said, parking the carriage near somebody's barracks. "Orihime, tie the horses up. We're heading in."

"Yes, Kukaku-sama!" Orihime cheered. She tied up the horses to a pole, and picked up Yoruichi, before joining up with the rest of them.

"Are they all like him?" Tatsuki asked, sounding nervous. "I felt… _wrong_ when he looked at me."

"They got their fair share of killers, all right. The chief of intelligence for one, and let's not even talk about the captain of the eleventh division." She took a puff on her pipe, and began heading further into the Gotei, the five of them trailing after her. "Don't get me wrong, though- not all of them are monsters. Gin's probably the worst of the lot- except maybe for one of them. Some of them are good people, too."

"I knew they couldn't all be bad." Orihime said happily. "They're just really serious-minded and believe in their laws a lot. Which we are technically breaking, I guess."

"That's enough chatter." Yoruichi said, from her spot in Orihime's arms. "We can only go so far before Kukaku has to explain herself- even a clan leader isn't free to walk around here without question. We need a plan for moving on after that."

"I'll be able to take you a couple miles in," Kukaku said reassuringly, "but yeah, after that you're on your own. I need to take care of business on my own, and that includes covering my tracks. But we'll get to that when we get to that... now let's go."

Silently, they marched on, leaving the carriage behind. Once again, Ichigo found himself to be quite glad that they actually had Kukaku and Yoruichi to rely on as guides – without them, they probably would get lost within only a few minutes. Judging by their current surroundings, and what Ichigo had seen from the hill earlier, the seireitei was a lot like a maze. Around them, there were nothing but white buildings and walls, all with orange tiled roofs and an occasional tree in between it all. While this all certainly was rather beautiful to look at, it did not help orientation. In fact, the only thing that they really could rely on to not get completely lost was the big hill in the center, and another wall which apparently protected the very center of the seireitei.

The streets were not all crowded, but there were constant signs of activity- cleaners sweeping the streets, shinigami out marching en masse, on patrol or on drills. Officials walking about, carrying paperwork, more shinigami… in just half an hour, he had seen hundreds of them, and that was not even an exaggeration. This really was a hub of military activity, the very heart of shinigami power, and there were many strong people too- every now and then, he'd sense reiatsu at his own level, or occasionally even greater. It was a little like a scene from a movie set in the middle ages- everything looked archaic, even though there was the occasional sign of more modern technology. Almost every street was flanked by walls, walls or building walls- there were few open spaces.

"So where exactly is our goal now, anyway?" Ichigo asked, as they walked slowly, as to not raise unnecessary suspicion.

"The very center." Yoruichi replied, having just left Orihime's arms to walk in front of him.

Tatsuki stopped dead in her tracks. "You mean that huge-ass tower is a prison?!"

"Keep moving!" Yoruichi hissed. "But yeah, you're right. That tower is the senzaikyu, the "Palace of Remorseful Sin", and the hill next to it is sokyoku hill, the place where Rukia's execution is set to take place."

"Geez... why would they even need a prison this big?" Tatsuki asked, quickly hurrying after them as to not get too far behind.

"The Soul Society is a big place, grumpy girl." Kukaku retorted, not even bothering to look back from her place at the front of their group. "There is a lot of people here, so it's only a given that there's also a lot of criminals, and a lot of criminals means that a big prison is needed. But seriously, can't you just cut out the chit-chat once and for all now? I already told you several times that you need to shut your mouths. The more you talk here, the sooner our cover will get blown. If that's what you want, you might as well turn yourselves in right away. So do you?"

"No, ma'am." Ichigo and Tatsuki replied simultaneously.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Kukaku snorted.

From there on, the rest of their journey was entirely silent – and unlike the way to the seireitei, the silence was at no point interrupted this time around. More than just a few times, they passed by more shinigami, though none of them paid any attention to them, and luckily enough, they came across no more captains. With the confidence of a person that has been walking around the seireitei for decades now, Kukaku brought them closer and closer to the center, until at long last, they were only a few blocks away from the inner wall – which was, however, still a good distance away from sokyoku hill.

"This is a good place." Kukaku suddenly said, stopping. "This is as far as I'll be able to take you in. From here on out, you lot are on your own."

"Let's step in somewhere undisturbed for a couple of minutes." Yoruichi said, calmly walking through a doorway in a wall, leading into a small, empty courtyard next to a barracks. Kukaku followed, and the four of them followed.

"Well, this is it." Kukaku said, smiling slightly. "Good luck, kids." She took a seat on a nearby bench, resting.

"…thanks." Ichigo said. She was a strange character, but she had been a great help. Feeling relieved, he let down his hood, and Tatsuki followed suit.

"From here, there are two direct routes to the prison," Yoruichi said, "one going through the streets, straight forward- but there will be heavy patrols that way. The second is… special."

"Special?" Uryu asked, frowning a little.

"It's a mixture of dashing over rooftops and through alleyways. I devised it myself, when I was still part of the Gotei."

Ichigo frowned- he hadn't known Yoruichi had once worked here, although given her familiarity with the place, it shouldn't surprise him. "So which one do we take?"

"You split up." Yoruichi replied.

"…is that a good idea?" Orihime said. "I mean, we're just… we barely know what we're doing. You know about this place, Yoruichi-san, but we don't. And if we run into trouble, isn't it better to be together?"

"The idea is that you will avoid 'trouble' at any cost." Yoruichi said. "Run if you can."

"Still, Inoue-san makes a good point." Uryu said. "We're in enemy territory, and ill equipped to handle a larger amount of enemies."

"And if you run into a captain, it's probably all over. No escaping, no fighting." Yoruichi said calmly. "Two teams will mean an increased chance that at least one team will make it. It's a risk- but this is already a risky enterprise."

"…I guess I understand." Tatsuki said, nodding. "Yeah, we can do that- right, Ichigo?"

"I guess." Ichigo said, feeling uneasy. "So what teams?"

"I wanna go with Tatsuki!" Orihime cheered.

"Orihime goes with Uryu, and Tatsuki and Ichigo forms a team of their own." Yoruichi said.

"Aww…" Orihime said, sounding disappointed.

"Ichigo and Tatsuki, who aren't that subtle-"

"Hey!" Ichigo shot back.

"-Who _aren't that subtle_," Yoruichi continued, "will take the direct route. You will strip out of your disguises and pose as new recruits of division eight. If anyone asks, you got lost- division eight is roughly in that direction, so you could still continue."

Losing no time, the two of them took their disguises off, standing in their normal shihakusho again.

"And if they ask us about division eight?" Tatsuki said.

"The captain's name is Kyoraku Shunsui. The vice-captain is Ise Nanao. Memorize this."

Quickly, the two of them repeated the names to themselves, trying to put it into their memory.

"I take it that means we will be going by roof?" Uryu said.

"Correct. You and Orihime will be moving over this building- just avoid rooftop guards, and use alleyways when you need to."

"Why can't I go with Tatsuki?" Orihime said. "I don't hate Ishida-kun, but…"

"You will go with him because he is a human being. His skills are the best out of the four of you, but he doesn't have a shinigami's fortitude. You have healing abilities."

"I see…" Orihime said, sounding disappointed still. "But I can't climb roofs."

"I could carry the both of us." Uryu said, clearing his throat awkwardly.

"You will." Yoruichi said. "I will be going over the roofs, watching the both of you. Nobody notices a stray cat."

"Got it." Ichigo said. "So let's go, then."

The four of them were just about ready to move- but then, somebody stepped into the empty courtyard. He had glasses, light, long hair and the typical shinigami uniform.

"Shit…" Yoruichi muttered.

"Who are you people?" He demanded.

"Hiya, bub." Kukaku said, standing up.

"Ah, Shiba Kukaku-sama!" The man said, bowing quickly. "Who are these people?"

"My servants." Kukaku said. "You lot, go on ahead- I'll settle this."

"I don't quite understand, Shiba-sama," the man said, looking confused as Ichigo and Tatsuki walked out. That alone might not have been so suspicious, but when Uryu, looking still like the harmless scribe, picked up Orihime and flashed away up to the rooftop, suspicion was certainly raised.  
"What's going on?"

"I know you, kid," Kukaku said. "You're Hidetomo, right? From division thirteen?"

"I am honoured that a clan head remembers me." Hidetomo said. "But still…

"Oh, I remember most officers who worked under my brother." Kukaku said dismissively.

"Still, this is quite irregular." Hidetomo continued. "Are these people really authorized to be here? Even a noble entourage shouldn't be going this far, this is division grounds and, uh…"

"There's no way you could just forget this, is there?" Kukaku said, sounding disappointed.

"I am obligated to report irregularities to the concerned division."

"I figured."

"So if you'll excuse me-" He began stepping towards the doorway, but Kukaku blocked his path. "Sorry about this, kid," she said, taking her sword out.

"What is the meaning of this, Shiba-sama?" He said, reaching for his own sword. "Guards! Guards!"

"That won't help you." Kukaku said. "I placed a sound-killing kido around this place as soon as you entered. I'm bad at a lot of things, but not kido."

Hidetomo drew his zanpakutou. "You leave me no choice, Shiba-sama," he said, taking a stance. "I must report-"

Suddenly, Kukaku moved her hand quickly, throwing what to the ignorant observer would have looked like fireworks at the man. It was, in fact, a bound spell, constructed to blind anyone it hit. Hidetomo blinked, and stepped back-

And in an instance, Kukaku had stepped forward, in one motion lashing out with her sword and raking it across Hidetomo's neck. He didn't even have time to react- letting out a slight gurgling sound, he sunk to the ground, dying quickly.

"Will you need help hiding the body?" Yoruichi said.

"You catch up with the kids." Kukaku muttered. "Poor bastard… wrong place at the wrong time, I guess."

"I am sorry, Kukaku."

"I know what I signed up for." Kukaku grumbled. "You worry about your part- I know how to make this hard to discover."

Yoruichi nodded, and swiftly jumped up to the rooftop.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Time had lost all meaning. Ever since the sentence had been decided on, ever since it had been clear that Rukia was going to be executed, the days just seemed to fly by for her. It still felt like it was just earlier today that she had been told the sentence, by none other than her own brother no less, when in fact, it was already two weeks ago. It had been obvious to Rukia that she would receive a punishment for the crime of creating a substitute shinigami, but never would she have thought that the sentence would be her death. Several months, maybe even years of prison, maybe, but an execution?

Obviously, when Rukia had been told about the punishment, she was in denial at first. Surely, this was a weird kind of joke, a prank, a bizarre dream? There simply was no way that this could be a punishment. There had to be a mistake of sorts which she would be told about soon enough, or maybe she would just be waking up, to find that the past few months never happened.

But nothing like that happened. Time went on. Her execution was decided to take place one month after her retrieval. She didn't wake up. No mistakes were made.

Sitting around in her prison cell in the senzaikyu all by herself, with nothing but a few visits by some of her colleagues to disturb her solitude, after a while Rukia reached the point where she simply accepted her punishment. Looking back on it all, with everything that happened, Rukia was just about certain that Ichigo wouldn't even mind if he were to somehow learn about her execution. After all, it was she who had just busted into his life, putting him into mortal peril multiple times... and worst of all, put him through the pain of knowing that he would have to be the one that would have to perform the konso for his sister.

Having no memory of how her life was before her own death in the world of the living, Rukia couldn't even begin to understand how Ichigo must have felt, having just lost his sister, and then being told that he needs to make her pass on... so who was Rukia to pressure him into doing it? No... Ichigo willingly giving up his powers, and letting her go was just about the best thing that he could have done. She couldn't blame him for it.

And of course, this was not the first time that Rukia had made the life of other people worse.  
She was responsible for the death of Shiba Kaien, one of the finest men the soul society had seen, and with him the Shiba had, if not fallen, then stumbled from grace. All because of her own weakness, her own incompetence. And now Ichigo had been dragged into her world- she only hoped he stayed out of it entirely.

Was this karma, she wondered? Was this the universe's way of meting out justice, having her finally pay the price for the damage she had done, for her irresponsibility, for her unprofessional behaviour, for the shame she had brought her nii-sama?

"Hey, Rukia." A rough, familiar voice interrupted her brooding.

She turned away from the window that she had been silently staring out of for hours now, towards her visitor – who turned out to be... "Renji. What do you want?"

"Nothin'." Renji said. "Do I need a reason to come down here?"

He honestly didn't know himself what to say- what could you say to your best and oldest friend when you knew she was going to die, when she didn't even deserve it?

"You never change, do you, Renji?" She said, and there was a shadow of a smile on her face. "How did they even let you come see me here? This is maximum security."

"Ain't a big time fukutaicho for nothing." Renji said. "You know me- all I had to do was put my foot down, and the guards just let me in nice and easy if I promised to behave." He grinned cockily.

"You begged nii-sama for help, didn't you?"

Renji flinched. "As if!"  
Actually, that had been almost exactly what happened- and it seemed that beneath all that ice, his captain had enough of a heart to understand.

"Renji, how is he coping?" Rukia asked, solemnly. "No- does he even care?"

"Idiot!" Renji barked. "Why wouldn't he care? He's your brother!"

"I don't even know why he took me in, adopted me like he did in the first place. I always thought he was a wonderful, charitable person- but I was never very successful, and with how I disgraced his name, I don't even see why he would care. Has he disowned me?"

"Shut up!" Renji shouted. "That's enough doom and gloom, Rukia- he cares, and I know it!"

"How would you know?"

"I served under him for a long time now. I can read him, just a little- and he isn't happy, Rukia. He's not happy at all."

"Says you."

"I ain't wrong." Renji insisted. "Just this morning, I saw a big stack of paperwork on his desk. From yesterday. Not done. He _never_ neglects work, and you know it."

"It doesn't matter." Rukia said, but her tone had shifted a little. "I'm still doing to be executed. And… it could be worse, really."

"Worse?" Renji exploded. "How could it be worse?!"

"I've had a good life. I'm over a hundred and fifty years old now. I've made friends and lost friends, and I still have loved ones. People like you, Renji. I had a long career, doing my best to make nii-sama proud. I pulled my weight. And I also hurt people along the way, really badly and without even realizing it. I… I'm fine with this. If I am to die, I can accept that."

"BULLSHIT!" Renji snapped. "What the hell kinda defeatist shit talk is that? Do you even believe that yourself?"

"It's reality." She said with an infuriating calmness. "There's nothing you or I can do to change it."

"You really think so?" Renji said, his voice trembling, "You really think it's all over? That there's no reason to fight?"

"Yes." She said, plain and simple.

"To hell with you, then!" Renji shot back. "I got better things to do than to babysit a defeatist!" Angrily, he stormed out.

He regretted his words before he had even taken five steps. Rukia had been there from the very beginning, back when the both of them were just helpless street rats in the Rukongai, little children doing everything and anything they could to survive- was that any way to speak to her?  
But part of him was too angry to care. How could she just… give up? What was the matter with her?

Still fuming, he began heading back.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Climbing roofs and jumping from one of them to another turned out to be every bit as uncomfortable as Uryu had feared that it would be. Carrying Orihime was already awkward enough (if not necessarily bad) by itself, but doing so while trying to jump was, to put it lightly, tricky. After trying to stay strictly on the roofs for a while, both of them agreed to only get on roofs on which they could actually walk ahead for a while, and walk down on the streets on all other occasions. While walking down in the streets did mean risking that they would be more likely to be seen by randomly patrolling shinigami, it did at the same time draw less attention to them than just walking on the roofs – if someone saw them walking on those, they'd be just about done for, anyway.

Luckily for Uryu and Orihime, though, right now, there were no shinigami in sight, and no nearby reiatsu to be felt, either, which meant that for the time being, they could advance quickly... in theory. In practice, things were a little different; none of the streets nearby seemed to lead them to the inner wall of the seireitei, and the roofs of the closest houses weren't all that suited for walking on them, either.

More than once, they had to completely change the way in which they were going, since they simply couldn't progress with it. At one point, they even came close to the inner wall... only to find out that there was no gate nearby. And of course, despite what she had said, Yoruichi was nowhere to be seen, leaving them completely without guidance.

"Again?!" Uryu asked, frustrated, as they once more got to a point where they could not progress.

"Stay calm, Ishida-kun. We can't let this get to us! We have to keep moving!" Orihime reminded him, in an oddly determined tone.

Uryu blinked. "Uhh... yeah. You're right, Inoue-san. C'mon, let's go back to the last turn, and see if we can find a better way from there..."

"Hey, you two!" A voice came from behind them. Uryu quickly turned around, to see that two shinigami had walked up to them – and unless he was completely mistaken, they both had reiatsu that denoted considerable strength, too. Well, fuck.

One of the two shinigami was a short, petite girl with dark blonde hair and gray eyes, while the other one was a fairly tall, dark-haired man with a goatee. Both of them gave Uryu and Orihime skeptical looks. "What are you two doing here?"

"Errr..." Uryu began. The two shinigami didn't necessarily seem hostile... if he were to come up with a good enough excuse, it should actually be possible to resolve this situation without having to attack them. It really seemed like a good possibility... if it weren't for the fact that Uryu had absolutely no idea what to say.

And apparently, he didn't have to, either. "Ahh, finally someone to ask for directions! You there! What are your names and ranks?" Orihime exclaimed, speaking in a surprisingly bossy tone. Uryu was surprised- she had somehow put on a distinctly un-Orihime tone _and_ manner of speech, sounding almost like she considered everyone and everything beneath her.

"Uhh... Kotsubaki Sentaro, third seat of the thirteenth division?" The male shinigami (who apparently was the same person that had called them out earlier) said in an uncertain tone.

"Kotetsu Kiyone, also third seat of the thirteenth division." The female shinigami introduced herself, sounding no less confused than her partner – and Uryu could not exactly blame them, especially when he himself wasn't sure where Orihime was going with this.

"Third seats, eh? I was hoping that at the very least a vice captain would be helping us out here, but I suppose the two of you will suffice. Do tell me, Kotsubaki-kun and Kotetsu-chan, where exactly is the nearest gate to the inner part of the seireitei?" Orihime continued, speaking in such a prideful tone that at first, Uryu didn't even realize that she had just called the female shinigami 'chan' – which generally was in incredibly informal honorific to use.

Luckily though, neither of the two shinigami seemed to have noticed, either. "Now hold on for just a second here!" The male shinigami, Sentaro, shouted. "Who are _you_ to ask for something like that of us?! You two look just like two servants to nobles."

"Servants?! How dare you!" Orihime cried out in an almost obviously exaggerated outrage. "Are you aware of whom exactly I am? I am Shiba Nami, first cousin of the head of the Shiba clan, Shiba Kukaku! I will not stand for this undignified treatment of my person!"

"Oh, err, I'm sorry for my partner, Shiba-dono. He just got a little ahead of himself!" The female shinigami, Kiyone, stuttered, while Sentaro bowed down in apology. Uryu's jaw fell open. They actually _bought_ this act?

He had to struggle to hold his bafflement back. This was actually working? Sure, she was wearing Shiba colours… but he had never imagined they'd believe it without question. Nobility counted for a lot, it seemed.

"Uh, may I ask why you are wearing a maid outfit, Shiba-dono?" Sentaro asked, sounding very much sheepish.

"Hmpf. Of course, a cretin such as you has no understanding of the current latest fashion among the noble houses." Orihime dismissed the question haughtily. "But, enough of this. I shall overlook this improper treatment of nobility for just this once, if you give us the directions, like I asked you to."

"Thank you, Shiba-dono!" Kiyone shouted, now also kneeling down. "Please do excuse my inappropriate curiosity though, but what exact business do you have in the inner seireitei?"

Orihime looked down at the two, haughty expression on her face, as if she were thinking about whether or not she should deem the two worthy to be told why she was here. "After your inappropriate behaviour, are hardly deserving of this, but very well. I am here to take care of my cousin's business in her stead. We need to hold negotiations with several other noble clans, since our clan plans to purchase a small lot of land. I have brought our clan's accountant along with me for that very reason. That is all that you need to know."

It was a gamble, Uryu noticed. They didn't know for sure if there were even noble clans that lived in the inner part of the seireitei – if Orihime was wrong about this, the two might get suspicious. Once more however, it seemed like Orihime got lucky. "Understood, Shiba-dono. The nearest gate to the inner seireitei is just a bit north of here. Shall we accompany to your goal?"

"That will not be necessary, Sentaro-san. I will be able to find the way by myself. Now begone from my sight!" Orihime ordered.

Sentaro and Kiyone exchanged a quick glance, before getting up, and hurrying off. Uryu just stared after them, trying to wrap his mind around the fact that all of this actually just happened. Orihime, on the other hand, just giggled.

"Inoue-san..." Uryu said, finally managing to regain his speech "that was amazing! How did you get the idea to do that?"

"It really was just a random thought that occurred to me, and I wanted to try out if it worked!" Orihime explained, giggling again. "I mean, when Kukaku-san and you acted like this against this splatter guy earlier, it worked, so I thought that this might be worth a try, too!"

"It was really impressive. You even had a fake name prepared?"

"Oh, that." Orihime smiled, scratching her head. "That was just from this character in a manga I'm reading. First thing that popped into my head."

Uryu nodded, and went silent. It was one thing to just play tricks on a random guard who they probably could easily just defeat in a battle was one thing, but attempting to trick two third-seats into thinking that one was nobility was something else entirely – and Uryu highly doubted that he himself would have had the courage to even try it. It really began to seem to Uryu that were was a lot more to Orihime than her just being an airhead...

"Can we go now, Ishida-san?" Orihime's voice snapped him from his wandering thoughts.

"Oh, yes. You're right." He nodded. "We should get moving again."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Ichigo and Tatsuki were heading down the streets, dodging patrols when they could. The odd shinigami looked their way, but didn't question them. Ichigo just barely controlled the butterflies in his stomach- it was really working; they were blending in so long as they didn't stick around or stick out.

"I can't believe it…" Tatsuki mumbled. "It feels too easy."

"Just keep your reiatsu down and keep walking." Ichigo muttered. "We'll be fine."

"For how long?"

"Hopefully enough that if they do call our bluff, we're close enough to make a dash for the tower."

"…right." Tatsuki said.

"Getting nervous?"

"Like hell." She growled. "Well, uh, yeah. I'm not chickening out, but… this mission is just…"

"It just sunk in how big this place is, and how high the stakes are, isn't that it?"

"And how would you know that, Mr. Sage-and-Seer?" She said, shooting a glance down the street. Nothing bad- just a couple of passing shinigami. The two of them kept walking, keeping a slow, leisurely pace.

"I know," Ichigo said once the shinigami had passed, "because that's just what it did for me. Ever since we walked through the gates. I knew it'd be dangerous, lots of strong people… but knowing it and really _realizing it_ isn't the same, now is it?"

"Yeah…" Tatsuki said uneasily. "I- I don't want to die. And we could. And I'm not even sure why I'm doing this."

"Why do you think you're doing it, Tatsuki?"

"…fucked if I really know." She shrugged. "I guess it's because well, I got all these powers and I might as well use them and now I realize how dumb that kind of thinking really is." She shook her head. "And there's also how you'd do something really reckless and stupid if there wasn't somebody to hold you back. Somebody needs to make sure you come back in one piece, yeah?"

"Noble." Ichigo said dryly.

"So what about you? I mean, you knew her for like a month, and… I guess I believe you now when you say you really weren't dating. You weren't, right?"

"No!" Ichigo grunted. "But still…"

"Is she really worth all this?"

"I don't even know." He mumbled. "But I- I gotta try. I owe her. Without her, all of us could be dead- me, Yuzu, mom, Karin… all of them. I don't know… maybe under their laws she really deserves it, but she's a good person. I don't know if I should be doing this, or if she'll really be worth all this trouble- but I know that if I don't even try, I'll regret it forever."

"You know, that actually didn't sound too cheesy." Tatsuki said. "You're really growing into the whole hero shtick."

"Shut up." Ichigo grumbled. "She matters. And she shouldn't die. And I have to give it all I've got, trying to save her, okay? This really is a lot like some stupid romance novel- charging into the tallest tower to save the girl and all that, but still…"

"I understand." She smiled. "She's a friend. That's all you need to say, really."

"Sheesh, this is cheesy…" He muttered.

But before the moment was allowed to get obnoxiously cheesy, they were interrupted. Round the corner came a blond woman with long hair, with a noticeable cleavage and an even more noticeable bust- but most noticeably of all, reiatsu greater than their own. She wore the shihakusho, and on her arm there was a badge of some sort.  
Instantly, they tensed up.

"Act normal." Tatsuki hissed.

The woman walked up to them, and it looked like she was going to walk past them- but then she stopped.

"Aren't you two going to salute a superior? Honestly, kids these days…"

Ichigo froze up. Luckily, Tatsuki didn't.  
"Our most sincere apologies!" She barked. "We're new recruits- we were just assigned to division eight. We were heading there now- there's some drill or something, and…"

"Fresh out of school, then?" The woman said, smiling, and it occurred to Ichigo that it really took very little for her to look seductive.

"Yeah. Uh. School." He managed.

"Look her in the eyes, you idiot!" Tatsuki said, and Ichigo wasn't sure how much of it was acting. "I'm so sorry- he's an idiot. Retarded, actually."

"Hey!" Ichigo shot back.

"Oh, I get that all the time." The woman laughed, and inspected them closer. "Your names, please."

"Uchiwa Yasako." Tatsuki said, and Ichigo marveled at the speed with which she thought of a fake name.

"Uh, Asano." He said. "Asano Keigo." Not too imaginative, but it would have to do.

"And your ranks? No, you wouldn't have any… so how do you kids like Ukitake-taicho? He's real friendly with recruits."

"Our taicho is Kyoraku Shunsui." Tatsuki said, not missing a beat. "We don't know the others too well- you hear a lot about them, of course, but we're… well, new to this."

"Oh right, silly me." She laughed. "So you don't know who I am?"

"No ma'am! Sorry ma'am!" Tatsuki shot back, and Ichigo decided that perhaps he should leave the talking to her.

"I'm Matsumoto Rangiku, fukutaicho of the tenth division."

"Glad to meet you, ma'am!" Tatsuki said, bowing and grabbing Ichigo's head, forcing him into a bow. "Now, we really should hurry-"

"Just one thing," Rangiku said, inspecting Ichigo closer. She made a face of sorts, and Ichigo tensed. Was this when they had to fight?  
"I just have one question. What's the flower of division eight?"

Shit. Shit shit shit. Fuck.

"…flower?" he said, trying to stall for time.

"Don't mind him, he's an idiot." Tatsuki said, "the flower is… a lily, of course. Yeah."

God, let this work…

"Oh right, that's true!" Rangiku cheered. "Sorry to hassle you kids- you go on to your drill."

"Y-yes, Matsumoto-sama!" Ichigo said, and walked- almost sprinted- away with Tatsuki.

* * *

Rangiku looked as they ran. Yeah, there was no way those two were who they said they were… and the guy had looked impossibly familiar. She could chase them down, of course- but then again, she just got off work and had some drinking to do with Hisagi and Kira. Not really worth the trouble…

She would have to report it, though. She sighed. Why did this always have to happen to her?

* * *

**Author's Notes:**Readers that are at least a bit familiar with One Piece might recognize the fake name that Orihime chose to be from the series. In case anyone is wondering why I picked that name in particular: Orihime's reasoning is the same as mine. It was the first thing that came to mind.


	14. At 14 chapters, this story needs depth

**Author's Notes:**  
I give to you: The weirdest chapter title yet. Have fun.

* * *

"...no, Ichigo does not have his cellphone with him. Yes Asano-san, I will tell you when Ichigo is home again. Yes. Goodbye." Masaki hung up the phone, and let out a sigh.

It was only a day now since Ichigo left, off to go to the Soul Society with that infuriating shopkeeper's help, all to rescue Rukia... and of course, he had not bothered to come up with any excuses to tell his friends, leaving them to call her, in worry about his sudden absence. Unable to come with an elaborate excuse on the spot, Masaki had simply told Keigo that he, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime (Ichigo still having told her who else was going with him) had all together left for a three-week trip to Europe to visit Rukia. It was a very thin excuse, Masaki knew, but luckily enough, Keigo accepted it after some initial criticism.

Whether or not Ichigo's friends here actually bought her excuse or not was currently the least of her concerns, though- her son was in the afterlife on a reckless rescue mission, with nobody with him other than some of his friends... which also included the son of her cousin Ryuken, Uryu. When Masaki heard that Ryuken's son was involved in this, too, she somehow found herself to be less surprised than she probably should have been... sure, whenever her cousin and she did talk, he mentioned how his son kept meddling in the affairs of the dead, but that alone was no guarantee that Uryu and Ichigo would do the same stupid thing together.

But they did. And now they were both in a place where almost everyone they met would have a good reason for killing them... all while Masaki had absolutely no way of knowing what was happening in Soul Society. The only way she would be able to get at least a vague idea of what was going on would be to contact that shopkeeper... but she would never resort to that, not when it was this man's fault that all of this happened in the first place. Not when he was the reason for being absolutely sick with worry, to the point where she barely managed to sleep last night...

"Y'know, kaa-san..." Karin's voice interrupted her thoughts "that's actually a good question that Keigo was asking there. Where _is_ Ichigo?"

Masaki turned around. After hanging up, she had just silently stared at the phone for a moment, lost in thought. She had not noticed her daughter walking up to her. "Didn't you hear what I said, Karin?" She asked quietly. "He's on a trip with some of his friends, to visit Rukia. He'll be back in a couple of weeks."

"Bullshit!" Karin shouted angrily. "I'm not a small child, kaa-san! Don't you think that I won't notice an obvious lie like that? If Ichigo was going on a trip, he'd have already been talking about this for ages now! And besides, why would he even go with this Ishida guy? He barely even knows him!"

"Ichigo isn't here anymore..." Yuzu said, floating down through the roof.

"I know he isn't! That's the problem!" Karin said, jerking at Yuzu's sudden appearance. It was weird how quickly they had adjusted- Yuzu was still there, she was a ghost, but... she was still Yuzu.

"No, you don't understand." Yuzu shook her head. "He's not here anymore. As in... not... I don't know how to explain it, but he isn't here on earth anymore. I would feel him if he was."

"That's ridiculous!" Karin shot back. "Kaa-san, what-"

"She's right." Masaki said wearily. "He's... elsewhere. Elsewhere in reality."

"What does that even mean?"

Masaki sighed. "Afterlife." She said, looking tired. "Karin, sweetie, there're some things you shouldn't have to know at your age- so just let it go for now."

"But we don't even know where he is? How can we not worry?"

"Ichigo will come back." Masaki said firmly. "He will- and when he does, I'll tell you everything I know. Now go play some football."

"As if..." Karin grumbled. This was freaking _weird_.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The dark meeting hall of the first division's main house was lit up, at least metaphorically, by the gloriously radiant reiatsu of eleven captains. The spiritual pressure would have killed a lesser soul quite easily; this was a meeting hall of giants. Not in the literal sense- the chief of intelligence stood about five feet tall- but in terms of power, the vast majority of souls were like ants in comparison to they, the captains of the Gotei Thirteen.

Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai surveyed the scene, looking almost as if his eyes were closed (his enormous eyebrows- each of which were the size of a decent mustache- coupled with sagging skin gave the impression that his eyes were constantly narrowed). The venerable commander was anything but asleep, though- he had been around since the very foundation of the Gotei, and had seen its darkest moments of crisis as well as its brightest moments of glory, and had never lost his composure in leading it.

"Captains," he began, "are you all present?"

"It seems Jushiro is absent due to health reasons, soutaichou." said Unohana Retsu, the ever gentle captain of the fourth division, chief medic and the second eldest shinigami in existence after himself. "And Zaraki-taicho appears to be absent, too."

"Such disrespect." The chief of intelligence murmured, frowning. Not that she didn't usually frown; it just became more accentuated.

"More likely he just got lost." Unohana replied. "He has a terrible sense of direction, as you know."

"The meeting will open without them. Zaraki will be reprimanded." Nobody really said it, but a reprimand would probably be the most pointless thing imaginable, but unprofessional behaviour had to at least formally be protested. "My captains, do you know why you have been summoned?" Yamamoto grumbled. He had a very imposing way of grumbling, one perfected over centuries, the perfect mix of authority and slight intimidation.

Nobody answered- as was expected.

"Earlier today, first division received a report, relayed from a lower ranked officer in sixth, given by the vice-captain of the tenth division, of grave importance." There was perhaps a hint of annoyance in the old man's voice. "The report, and I quote, says, 'I saw two shinigami, this tall muscled guy with orange hair and some tomboy with black hair who were really suspicious, because they said they were with division eight and didn't even know what flower the division had, and they seemed pretty strong too, almost as much as me, but that's not really my business because I'm going off duty'." The ancient captain commander raised an eyebrow, which would probably be considered a Herculean effort for any man his physical age if not for that he was, in fact, the captain commander. "Captain of sixth division, Kuchiki Byakuya?"

"I am aware of the report. We deployed two officers specialized in reiatsu sensing, and checked for individuals heading in the direction that Matsumoto-fukutaicho had left." His face as controlled and emotionless as always, he continued after a slight pause. "There are two individuals matching the description, of considerable reiatsu- considerable in the sense that they are at least at the level of power expected of a third seat- headed inwards, toward the center of the Gotei Thirteen. It is my conclusion that we are dealing with _ryoka_- intruders. I recommend a general alert."

"There was a report the other day about a senkaimon opening in the Rukongai." Yamamoto said. "I dismissed it as a minor matter- but it seems more than likely now that it would be what carried these invaders here."

"Aww man, that's all we were called all the way out here for?" The complainer was Kyoraku Shunsui, whose flamboyant choice of clothing and mannerisms would fool the typical observer into thinking that he was some spoiled, dandyman casanova- which was more than likely the idea. "Seems like kind of an overreaction, don'tcha think? I'd rather be back at the division, drinking."

"There's no underestimating any invader." The speaker was Kaname Tosen, the quiet, black captain of the ninth division. "We did not grow this strong by underestimating our enemies. They could be terrorists, criminals, deserters- they must be hunted down."

"Quiet!" Yamamoto said, making it clear who was leading the discussion. "I want all divisions on alert, and the intruders caught, then handed over to the _onmitsukidou_ for interrogation."

"What should be done if we do come across the invaders?" Komamaru Sajin- an enormous man, wearing a mask helmet and other concealing accessories that made sure that not the slightest bit of his skin could be seen- asked. Out of all the captains, he was easily the one most loyal to the head captain, on account of Yamamoto having at one point, many years ago, saved his life.

"Keep them as unharmed as possible. Killing them is only an absolute last resort, and if you do have to do it, keep at least one of them alive. Our highest priority is to find how they have been able to infiltrate the seireitei, so that we can make sure that such an incident never occurs again." He looked around, giving each of the assembled captains an authoritarian stare. "Are there any more questions?"

The response he received was, as to be expected, a collective silence. Only a few of the captains shook their heads. "Good. You are all dismissed, then."

* * *

Dismissed as they were, the captains all began to head back to their own divisions, with varying urgency. While some of them, as Kuchiki Byakuya, walked at a fast pace, others simply took their time, walking slowly, such as Kyoraku Shunsui.

Among this latter group was also Unohana Retsu, the gentle yet universally feared captain of division four, instantly noticeable with her black hair in a double braid across her ample chest. While she fully realized the importance of acting quickly and catching the intruders as soon possible, there was not much that her division could do about it, being specialized in only medical support. That was, however, not her reason for staying behind a little longer. No, the reason for that her desire to speak to one of the other captains...

"Sosuke-kun, may I have a word?" The captain of the fifth division, Aizen Sosuke turned around, a bespectacled, calm man with brown hair.

"Huh? What is it, Unohana-taicho?" He asked in a confused tone.

"Oh, nothing in particular, Sosuke-kun. I just wanted to hear what your thoughts on this situation are."

The man gave her a calculating look. "You mean my thoughts about the invaders."

"Quite." Unohana said, smiling the calm, serene smile that she knew struck terror in the hearts of men everywhere (and women too; the terror was very much up to date with gender equality).

"Well, it is certainly distressing." Aizen said, smiling back. "I am not concerned for myself- but who knows what a bunch of renegades might do? If they are strong, they could probably kill many of our squad members as we bring them down."

"And that would mean even more work for me." Unohana said, sounding as deviously gentle as ever. "Why, rebellious elements might even use this as a distraction to try and accomplish their own nefarious goals."

"Surely you aren't suggesting this was orchestrated by some power hungry noble, Unohana-taicho?" Aizen said, chuckling lightly.

"Oh, you read far too much into my concern- but I've seen this happen before. Kaname-taicho was right that we need to be vigilant... although I suppose it's probably just me fussing over nothing."

"As expected from a senior like yourself, you know anything there is to fuss about in the right way."

"Oh, you flatter me, Sousuke-kun." Unohana giggled, waving her hand lightly. "Even though the nobility is sometimes corrupt, I doubt any of them would risk their station for some wild scheme."

"You are quite right, senpai." Aizen smiled again, and moved to walk past her.

"Then again, history has taught us that not only nobility tries its hands on rebellion."

"Senpai?"

"Good day, Aizen-taicho. I fear that my division needs me- and undoubtedly, so does yours."

"Oh, quite." The bespectacled captain said, walking past her. "Have a good day, Unohana-taicho."

With that, Unohana headed back to the fourth division- there were always wounded to tend to.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Meanwhile, far away from the seireitei, out in the western districts of the Rukongai, Shiba Kukaku had finally arrived back at her estate. By now, it had already been several hours since she had left Ichigo and the others on their own, and with no way of knowing what was going on, she could only hope that they were doing fine.

Kukaku was only barely worried, though- at least Uryu and Orihime had shown themselves to be perfectly capable of keeping up their disguises, and even in the case that Ichigo and Tatsuki messed up, Yoruichi was still following them. No, with Yoruichi around, there was little to worry about... especially when Urahara, of all people, put his trust into these kids. After all, the shopkeeper would not have picked them if he wasn't absolutely certain that they would help him accomplish his goals...

Getting out of the seireitei by herself had ultimately been easier than Kukaku had expected. One of the biggest issues had of course been getting rid of Hidetomo's corpse, which she had resolved with the use of an intricate kido spell and a bag, put together. The spell compressed anything inside the bag to a neat, non-conspicuous size… but the weight was the same, though, and it hadn't exactly been easy to carry it with her one arm.

Convincing Jidanbo to let her get out of the seireitei on the other hand had been even easier than getting in, since the guard just believed her lie that her servants where taking care of her business, while she already went home. Without any further questions, the guardian simply opened the gate, and let her pass.

On her way through the Rukongai, Kukaku pushed the horses to run as fast as they could, so that she would get back home as soon possible. She had already wasted enough of her time trying to figure out how to handle Hidetomo's corpse... and then there was the fact that if investigations were made, she could easily be implicated. They would ask what particular nobles she were going to see, what deals were made… a tenacious investigator would soon realize she was hiding something. Being a clan head only went so far- treason was enough to get you killed, nobility or not, and they didn't really have to bother with hard evidence; the onmitsukidou had supreme power over all it saw fit to incriminate.  
Then again, intruders in the seireitei would cause a big stir- hopefully enough that investigators wouldn't come looking her way before she had a chance to prepare.

When she finally did make it back home, the first thing that the Shiba clan head did was ordering her servants to give Hidetomo a proper burial. The only reason she had to kill the kid was because he had the worst luck in coming across her at the wrong time, and the very least that she could do was to give him a burial. She took only her manservants, Ginkaku and Kinkaku, who she knew would neither talk to anybody about this, nor even think about betraying her.

Once she was certain that everything would be taken care of properly, Kukaku headed to her own rooms, and made sure that nobody would interrupt her. There was still someone that she needed to contact.

She turned on the huge video screen she had purchased last year, an ultimate luxury of communication- bloody good technology, although it was sometimes hard to handle. Fiddling with the remote, she managed to finally send out a signal. Before long, it was answered.

"Ah, Kukaku-san! It has been too long since I had the pleasure of talking to you." Urahara greeted her, his face appearing on the enormous screen.

"Cut out the chit-chat, Urahara." Kukaku said, sitting down on the floor in front of the monitor. "We both know that unless you completely changed over the past one hundred years, you want to hear about something else entirely, don't ya?"

The shopkeeper gave her a mischievous grin. "You know me too well, Kukaku-san. Do tell me, then: How did it go so far?"

"I've gotten the kids into the seireitei. They were disguised as my servants, and I was able to take them several miles in without getting detected. We've split them up into two groups: One group consisting of the two kids with the shinigami powers, and one group with the other two kids. Yoruichi is watching over them." Kukaku explained, lighting her pipe.

Urahara made an approving nod. "Very good... yes, very good indeed. From now on, everything should proceed as I planned it. I have to thank you for your help, Kukaku-san... you shall receive a token of my gratitude very soon."

"A token of your gratitude, huh..." Kukaku repeated quietly, blowing out some smoke from her mouth. "This better be good, Kisuke. I had to kill someone to make sure that these kids don't get discovered before they are even on their own – this 'token', as you call it, better be worth it."

"Oh, in my opinion, said token really should be quite handy to you... but I suppose in the end, the decision on whether it is useful or not lies in your hand." He said, grinning.

"Bah, we'll have to see about that." Kukaku said dismissively. "There's one more thing that I gotta ask you, though: Why the Kurosaki boy? Why did you pick him, of all people, Kisuke?"

"Are you not happy to see your second cousin?"

"That's beside the point here!"

Urahara gave her a look. "How secure is this line?"

"You tell me." Kukaku snorted. "Pretty much all the noble households have a line like this, screen and all, and they're mostly not spied on, 'cause it's considered 'rude'. I contacted you just now, and it's the first time that's worked in a long time- I'm pretty sure nobody's listening; how about you?"

"Very well." Urahara said, nodding. "Ichigo is not the only one of interest to me-"

"He's the most important one, ain't he? The queen of your chess board."

Urahara gave a long, hearty laugh. "My queen? Yes, for that particular group- although I've got far more valuable pieces in play. Like the Shiba, for instance."

"I ain't sure if I should be flattered or insulted." Kukaku said, frowning, not quite comfortable with the idea of being somebody's 'piece'. But then again, it had been her who started the chess analogy.

"Feel whatever way you like." Urahara said. "Ichigo- well, there's a number of reasons. First and foremost, he's strong and has lots of room to grow. Potential- and speaking as a scientist, potential is one of the most exciting things in the universe."

"He's the son of Isshin." Kukaku said. "This wasn't an accident, was it?"

"Believe what you will, but I did not engineer his becoming a shinigami. I did have plans for him, but not before he had had more time to mature. What Kuchiki Rukia did was a fluke, a desperate gamble that worked out quite well." He tapped his chin. "I guess it seems like he's my tool, but I prefer to look at it as a mutual usage. I've given him power and tutelage that money simply cannot buy, and in fifty years or so he might almost rival a captain. He'll have a good life, and an even better afterlife. Right now, he does my bidding, which I consider adequate pay for my investment."

"Right." Kukaku said, taking a puff on her pipe. She was not quite convinced- he seemed sincere, but he was _good_ at seeming sincere. She knew enough about his former subordinate, Kurotsuchi Mayuri, to shudder at the thought of him- and in his own way, Urahara Kisuke could be a lot more intimidating. "So what'd you be doin' if it wasn't Ichigo?"

"Let's just say that this group saves me having to reveal another ace in the hole."

"So it was all an accident, eh?"

"One that I salvaged to its fullest."

"And if I don't believe you?"

"Does that matter? You've no conceivable reason to turn against me. You know my goals, and they are the same as before."

"Yeah, I do." Kukaku said, sounding more aggressive, "But sometimes, I gotta wonder if you're the right choice. You're as slippery as an eel soaked in oil." Urahara only laughed at the comparison. "Yoruichi pops up here after a hundred years of silence, and suddenly she tells me that 'it's time', soundin' like she's from some bad mystery novel. And now I'm a killer again, all 'cause I trust you both, and my second cousin- who I don't even know- is risking his neck for you, and he don't even know what he's doin'."

"Kukaku," Urahara said, his voice softer, "you know I'd never do something genuinely destructive, unless it was to make something infinitely more constructive. You've known me since I was an awkward teenager. You said you trust me- so let me assure you that you're making the right choice. I've accounted for every possibility I could think of, and when we're done, the Soul Society won't be the same. People _will_ die on the way, but when we're done, the Shiba will stand high- and your cousin will be both alive and well to see it."

"All right, all right," Kukaku grumbled. "no need to try an' seduce me with pretty words of glory- I just needed to know you're still the Kisuke I used to know."

"It'd be strange if I hadn't changed in the time I was away, after what was done to me- but I do not hate the Gotei Thirteen -not anymore-, and the plans I have will work out well. I'd love to give you the details, but... well, I think a dab of paranoia is justified here. Not that I don't trust you, but I might not trust this line entirely."

"So didja count on, say, cousin Ichigo runnin' into somebody like Kenpachi, or Soifon?"

"All accounted for." Urahara smiled. "Don't you worry. Now, if you'll excuse me-"

"I ran into Ichimaru Gin on my way in." Kukaku said. "Talked to us for a couple minutes, then went on his business. Didn't seem to raise no alarms, but..."

"...oh." Urahara said. "Yes, I see what you mean. Thank you for mentioning that."

"No problem."

"Well, goodbye. I'll stay in touch- I'll need you to move into the seireitei at some point; I'll let you know."

"Sure-" Kukaku said, but the screen had already flickered to black.

Sitting quietly by herself, Kukaku puffed on her pipe and wondered if she really knew what she was doing.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Slowly but steadily, dusk was falling over the seireitei. The sun had already set a short while ago, so that now, it was only a matter of a few more minutes before it would be night. For most of the shinigami working under the Gotei Thirteen, this meant the end of their work for the day, with the exception of those that were assigned to patrols at night, or were doing overtime.

And of course, it meant absolutely nothing for shinigami not working under the Gotei Thirteen.

Among this scarcely represented group was Shihoin Yoruichi, who was currently dashing over the roofs of the seireitei, searching for Ichigo and Tatsuki. Just earlier, she had led Uryu and Orihime to a big garden of a noble house, where they would be able to stay the night undetected. Since noble families living the seireitei (especially in the inner part) considered themselves to be absolutely untouchable, none of them really cared about how safe their homes where – after all, what kind of burglar would be dumb enough to break into a house that was surrounded by the Gotei Thirteen's divisions?

For Uryu and Orihime, this meant that they could spend the night relatively safe, though Yoruichi had still advised them not to sleep both at the same time. Enemy territory was enemy territory, after all.

The last thing that Yoruichi herself would be doing today would be finding Ichigo and Tatsuki, and leading them to a safe place to stay the night, and then get herself something to eat (and preferably something that was not cat food). So far, with the exception of the incident with the squad thirteen kid, everything had gone surprisingly smoothly – almost too smooth.

While even Yoruichi wasn't fully aware of Urahara's plans, she knew enough to know that _him_ making his move was pretty much essential to it. But there was no telling when that would happen, and until then, all that she could do was helping Ichigo, Tatsuki, Uryu and Orihime on their foolish mission to rescue Rukia. So far, the four of them had some good luck, but that could just as well end at any second. And of course, sooner or later, their getting discovered would be inevitable...

Yoruichi could only hope that once the inevitable did happen, none of the four actually did come across a captain. If they did, it would mean that she herself might have to step in, to assure that the group in question would not be taken out... and even then, there was no guarantee that she would be able to actually defeat a captain. In fact, going by the information Urahara had provided her with about the current captains, at least five of them (aside from of course the four oldest captains- Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai, Unohana Retsu, Ukitake Jushiro and Kyoraku Shunsui, against whom she didn't stand a chance in any case)- might be very problematic to fight, even for her. It certainly didn't help that she had been inactive for almost a hundred years now...

Out of those five, one specific captain worried her in particular... the captain of the second squad, Soifon. The reason that encountering the woman worried Yoruichi was not just her skill as fighter, too, but moreso what she would have to say to her, should they meet...

But that was only a worst-case scenario. Yes, if everything went according to how Kisuke had planned it, she might not even come across Soifon, or any of the other captains...

Though the more she thought about it, the more uncertain Yoruichi was as to whether she did want to see them – _her_ again or not.

Thankfully though, before she could think about any more of that, she started to feel two particular reiatsus... the ones that she was looking for. Yoruichi followed the weak, but definitely noticeable presences, and could soon enough see both Ichigo and Tatsuki trying to hurry from house corner to house corner, in an attempt to remain as unseen as possible.

Speeding up her pace, Yoruichi made her way towards the two, and finally jumped down from a roof near the two. "Are the two of you playing ninja?"

Ichigo and Tatsuki cringed at unexpected noise, and turned around to Yoruichi with amusingly shocked faces. "Yoruichi? Why do you have to surprise us like that?!" Ichigo loudly hissed.

"Because for one thing, there's no one nearby, and for another thing, it amused me." Yoruichi replied bluntly. She wasn't even lying about that – there really was no one nearby, with the closest patrol that she had been able to detect being several streets away.

"What do you want? Did something happen to Orihime and Ishida?" Tatsuki asked, clearly worried that about the two being harmed (though she was probably moreso worried about Orihime).

Yoruichi shook her head. "No, those two are fine. I already led them to a relatively safe place where they can stay the night, and now I'll help you find one, too."

"You mean we shouldn't continue towards the center?" Ichigo asked, scratching his head.

"Of course not. You still have a long way to go before you actually reach sokyuko hill – it is just about impossible for you to reach that place in one day. You haven't even reached the inner seireitei yet. For the time being, you're better of resting." Yoruichi explained, shaking her head once more.

"So resting it is then, huh..." Tatsuki noted. "Do you know any nearby places where we could spend the night?"

"Oh, don't you worry..." Yoruichi said, grinning (as possible as that was in her cat form). "I already have something in mind."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Soifon- whose name extended only to those two syllables, as she had no family name as a token to her sworn servitude to the Gotei Juusantai- sat up late, reviewing paperwork- particularly, cadet performance reviews. Most people would have considered late night paperwork a little overkill, but to her, it was almost soothing after the busy work hours she kept.

She found that her mind wandered- the idea that the seireitei, _her_ seireitei whose security she was responsible for, had been infiltrated was… distracting. The general alert had gone out just before sundown, but no progress had been made. She had wanted to send out her militia, specifically the trackers, but the intruders had last been seen near division six, and Kuchiki Byakuya was as proud as he was zealously devoted to the law. It was a sentiment she could understand and perhaps even admire, if she had taken the habit of admiring her peers. Right now, it seemed more of a nuisance than anything else- division six had found nothing, and now it was dark- if the intruders were still there, they were hiding. Tomorrow, she was sending the onmitsukidou out, inter-division politics be damned.

She frowned to herself. The intruders really were hidden right now- and that wasn't an easy feat to accomplish in a place this full of identifiable reiatsu signatures. A tracker specialist could sense an odd signature easily- probably, they were hiding not only their bodies, but their reiatsu too.  
This was troubling. That was a higher level of infiltration skill seldom seen outside her own second division- there had been a few rebellious organizations in the seventy or so years she had been in charge that could manage that, but she had purged them all. What could this mean?

Well, her investigator's mind began, either they are skilled rebel infiltrators come here to steal something- or they have accomplices who are good enough. Perhaps even an inside source. Could it be nobility? No, they usually knew better than to let their petty plots interfere with how the Gotei Thirteen ran. The last time that had happened, she had executed a Shihoin- no, it was possible, but unlikely.

Absent-mindedly, she wondered how she would make them talk once she had caught them. If they were powerful, it was more than likely she would have to attend the interrogation, or even hold it herself. It had been some time since she had had to torture somebody. Not something she particularly enjoyed, but she knew how to break a man's will- she just hadn't had much occasion to do so in over forty years now; the Gotei was at such a pinnacle of power that nobody could really challenge them. There were little fiefdoms out in the rukon, but none that really compared, or could challenge them.

Knives, perhaps? Too crude; only if they were pressed for time. Electricity?

She yawned. It really was late, and it was no time to fuss about how to interrogate prisoners. If she was lucky, she could just scare them into submission- she knew how to do that, and it was a lot less messy. Finishing up the performance reviews, she climbed into her futon and fell asleep.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Uryu looked around. There were trees all around them, just as if they were in actual forest. The actual noble house that this garden that they were in belonged to was nowhere to be seen... Yoruichi definitely had not been exaggerating when she had called this garden enormous. He let out a sigh.

"I suppose this place here is as good as anywhere else in this garden... let's just stay here for the night, Inoue-san." Uryu said, to Orihime, who was curiously examining one of the trees around them.

"Oh, alright!" She replied, seemingly not in the least uncomfortable with the thought of having to sleep under a tree.

"You can already go to sleep for now, Inoue-san. I will take the first shift." He explained, looking further around to see if there actually were any buildings or anything that he had missed. When Yoruichi had shown them this place, she had made it rather clear that just because nobody seemed to be around, they still could not be careless – noble houses had many servants, and there was no telling if some of them were actually assigned to patrols or not.

Of course, Yoruichi telling them to do this had been, as far as Uryu was concerned, hardly necessary: He knew better than to just let his guard down in a place where he was completely surrounded by hostile shinigami... especially after his loss to that red-headed asshole that had come with his captain to retrieve Rukia.

Before she had left them for good, Yoruichi had still managed to somehow find something to eat and to drink for them – though, she had been able to get them little more than just a few rice balls, and some bottles of water. It was still better than nothing, and so Uryu didn't complain. In their situation, they could hardly be picky, anyway.

"Mhh... I don't think I'll be able to sleep yet, Ishida-kun." Orihime said, sitting down under a tree.

Uryu turned around. "It would be better if you did. We are going to need every bit of sleep that we can get... I doubt that we'll be able to keep up our disguises for much longer tomorrow."

"I know, it's just... I think I have too much on my mind right now to be able to fall asleep. I'm just, I don't know..." Orihime scratched her head, at loss words.

"Anxious?" Uryu asked, trying to help out.

Orihime considered the word for a moment, and then gave him a determined nod. "Yeah, anxious... I mean, it's like... it all depends on us whether or not Kuchiki-san lives or not. And then there's dozens of strong people here, who'll be searching for us sooner or later... it really is kinda overwhelming. And... I'm still hoping that I might find my brother somewhere here... he was always protecting me, so I'm certain that he'd try to become a shinigami!"

Her brother... yeah, Uryu remembered that incident. On that particular day, he himself had first become aware of Ichigo being a shinigami. Uryu had already been on his way to destroy the hollow that once had been Orihime's brother – not that he knew or cared who that hollow once was at that time – when he could feel how its reiatsu had vanished. When he himself actually arrived on the scene, everything was already over, and Ichigo was about to leave. Uryu had been able to catch a bit of his conversation with Rukia, enough to figure out who the hollow was, and of course enough to learn that Ichigo really had become a shinigami. In retrospect, it probably really was for the better that on that day, Ichigo had been faster than him... in any other case, talking to Orihime would have been rather awkward, to say the least.

But regardless of that, her thinking that her brother had already somehow made it to the seireitei was nothing more than overly optimistic thinking. In all likelihood, Orihime's brother was somewhere far out in the Rukongai, with no memory of his life, and no intention to ever become a shinigami... but Uryu realized that he couldn't just say this out loud, and thus only nodded.

"Say, Inoue-san..." he began, trying to think of a way to change the topic "I hope you don't mind me asking, but... why are you doing all this? In a fight, you would stand even less of a chance than me, Kurosaki-san or Arisawa-san. I can understand that you would want to search for your brother, but why go on this mission to save Kuchiki-san? Unless I'm mistaken, you barely knew her – why risk your own life for her?"

Even as he was still talking, Uryu already felt like what he was saying was not that much better than just bluntly telling Orihime how likely her brother being in the seireitei was, but it was already too late to take back any of it.

"Hmm... well, at first, I only really got into this all because Tatsuki-chan was doing these things..." Orihime said, seemingly not minding his question in the least (at least Uryu hoped so) "...but when I heard that Kuchiki-san was going to be executed, I just... felt that I had to do something. You're right, I barely knew her, but I always liked it when she was around at school, and... I just wouldn't be able to stand the thought of knowing that she is dead, and I could have done something to change it. I know that I'm not as strong as Tatsuki-chan, you, or Kurosaki-san, but I know that I'm not useless! If I can make even a slight difference, then I'll gladly do it." Uryu smiled weakly, still remembering that he told Ichigo something very similar when he had let Rukia go. "And what about you, Ishida-san?"

Uryu blinked a few times in confusion, not having expected Orihime to actually ask him the same in return.

"…I don't actually know." He said. "Urahara-san contacted me, and I didn't say no. I guess I want to know, about the shinigami."

"Because they killed your people?"

"How-"

"I asked Urahara-san, and I listened carefully. I know they killed most of the Quincies, and that they were involved with… well, your grandfather's death." She looked away. "I'm sorry- that's none of my business."

"No, no," he said, shaking his head, "it's quite all right. They killed most Quincies alive- but they brought it on themselves. I don't hate them for something that happened before I was born, but I don't have any love for them either. I want to know if they're really as sinister as you could imagine, or if they're really good people who had to do a dirty job out of desperation."

"I see."

"It's probably neither- the world isn't black or white. I wish it was, but from what I see so far, it doesn't seem like they're cruel or particularly destructive."

"They seem like humans." Orihime said. "Just like you and me, but with more power. Not some kind of mystical gods or spirits- people who do a job, for money, who look forward to the end of a work shift."

"Yes…" Uryu mumbled. "They're people. It was easier back when I just thought they were merciless killers, I guess."

"It was Kurosaki-kun, wasn't it?"

Blast this girl and her surprisingly accurate assumptions. "Yes… I guess it was. Even when I beat him bloody, he kept going. You can't tell him this, but… I suppose I grew attached to him. And the rest of you. I don't have any friends- I know we're just on a mission, but somehow… I feel like I belong." Abruptly, Uryu cut himself off. He had spoken carelessly, said a little more than he had wanted to admit, because somehow this girl was the kind of person who made you feel accepted, like she'd accept anybody who let her.

"We're friends now, Ishida-kun." She said, before an awkward silence had time to occur. "It's silly to think we need to be alone- we're strongest when we're together." She looked deep in thought. "And that's scientifically true too, you know. So you better not object."

"Or I suppose Isaac Newton will come haunt me for ignoring the values of camaraderie?" Uryu said dryly, but behind his tone he felt oddly moved.

"How did you know?" Orihime said, and he wasn't sure if she was joking or not.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Ichigo looked around. They were under a bridge, on the bank of a small river. Not too far away from them, he could see a pipe, which presumably led to some sort of sewers, and was easily big enough for a person to walk in. When Yoruichi had said that she knew a place where they could stay the night, _this_ definitely was not what he had expected.

"You're really telling us to sleep here?" Ichigo asked, giving Yoruichi a glare.

"Well, if you want, you can as well go into the sewers to find a place that is more to your liking. Both places should be more or less equally secure." Yoruichi noted dryly.

Ichigo was already about to voice his dislike for her being sarcastic about something like this, when Tatsuki spoke up. "Why does it even have to be near the water? If we sleep here, we'll be frozen to near-death by tomorrow morning!"

"Why, you ask?" Yoruichi said, sitting down on the ground "Because getting to the next remotely secure place would take the two of you at least another two hours, which I doubt that you will want to continue for today. It's either this, the sewers, or turning yourselves in. So what will it be?"

Ichigo and Tatsuki exchanged a glance, came to a silent agreement, and then both said "We will stay here..." in an unhappy tone.

Yoruichi nodded. "Thought so. If you're really so concerned about a cold night, I could as well transform back into my human form, and cuddle with the two of you, to keep warm..." Ichigo and Tatsuki exchanged another quick look, agreeing to immediately reject the offer "...or I could go out once more, and try to find you something to use as sheets."

"Best not risk it, I guess." Ichigo said.

"It's no risk when I am involved." Yoruichi said, and Ichigo detected what almost sounded like cockiness. "I am pretty good at the art of not being seen." And she headed off into the night, probably to keep watch.

Ichigo sat down, leaning himself against a rock. He sighed; this wasn't what he had imagined when he thought of invading the Seireitei. Then again, it couldn't all be dashing dashingly from street to street, heroically evading all shinigami they could find, he supposed.

Tatsuki yawned. She looked tired, and to be truthful, he was tired too.  
"You know, we're doing pretty good so far." He said.

"Don't jinx us."

"Yeah, yeah…" he mumbled. "I've been thinking, though…"

"This ought to be good."

"No jokes." Ichigo said, shaking his head. "Before we left home, I confronted my mother... y'see, she can actually see spirits. Karin, too. So I called her out on making me think for years of my life that I was insane or something."

"Did you now?" Tatsuki questioned, giving him a scrutinizing look. "Well... maybe your mother had a good reason for doing that? I mean, look at where we are now... right in the afterlife, trying to save the person that got us into this entire mess to begin with."

"Yeah, yeah, I know! But that's not my point here." Ichigo said dismissively.

"And what is your point?" Tatsuki asked, her tone already mildly annoyed.

He hesitated for a moment. "...she told me that my father was a shinigami, too."

Tatsuki gave him a bewildered stare. "Ehh? You mean... he was like us? Living humans, turned into shinigami?"

...That was a valid question. While Masaki had told Ichigo that his father was a shinigami, she hadn't said anything else about the matter. Ichigo had no idea whether or not his father had started out as a substitute, like him, or if he had been a shinigami stranded in the human world, like Rukia. When he had last talked to his mother, he obviously wasn't going to cause her more pain by asking for details... and so, his father remained just as much of a stranger to him as he always had been to Ichigo. "...I don't know, actually. All my mother told me that he was a shinigami... nothing more. No details or anything... but honestly, I don't regret not asking her for details."

"Hmm... so, you think that maybe we are going to come across your father here?" Tatsuki asked, after remaining quiet for a moment.

"I suppose I really am hoping for that, yeah..." Ichigo admitted reluctantly. "It is probably really unlikely that we'll find him here – I mean, I don't even know if he's actually really dead or alive right now – but... yeah, I'd really like to find him here. And not just him, too... I want to try and find Chad. He must be out there somewhere."

"Ah, yeah..." Tatsuki scratched her head. "Y'know, I sort of keep forgetting that this all – that it's really the afterlife. It's just kinda hard to really understand that it's so much like the world of the living..."

Ichigo chuckled quietly. "Oh, I know what you mean... I never would've expected the afterlife to be some place like this." For a moment he remained silent, considering something that just came to his mind. Then- "Say... does this whole thing seem… I don't know, kind of haphazard to you?"

"The sleeping place? Yeah, I guess we could do better-"

"No, the whole operation. Think about it- Urahara-san trains us for two weeks, and we're sent into this huge place… and we still don't really know what we're doing."

"Well yeah, we're new at this. We didn't have a lot of time."

"No, not that." Ichigo shook his head. "We're sent in here, and they didn't even bother to try to educate us about this place, about who to look out for… you know, learning more about how this place works. Doesn't that sound weird to you? I mean, it's not like they didn't have the time- and he'd want us to know, wouldn't he?"

"What are you getting at?"

"Do you think Urahara-san even expects us to succeed?"

"I…" Tatsuki said, looking as if though she had a rebuttal, but quieting herself. "Sure he would. I mean, he put this much into it, right?"

"That, or something else is up."

"You know what? Yeah. Something else probably is up." Tatsuki said, looking him in the eye. "I don't think he just wants us to save her. He's getting something out of this that we don't see- but that's not exactly news, is it? And it doesn't change what we're going to do, or how we do it."

"I just don't like the idea of being somebody's pawn."

"Neither do I. But thinking too hard about it isn't going to help. Now let's go to sleep, and think more about how untrustworthy the people we work with are tomorrow."

Ichigo shut his mouth. She was right- this didn't change much of anything.

"Right. Sleeping. So uh, I guess I'll just take this patch of dirt, then…"

"We could just sleep together." Tatsuki said.

"I- uh- sleep- uh uhm-" Ichigo said, trying to process a train of thought that was, sadly, not too familiar to his teenage brain.

"You know, like they do in the army when it's cold. Huddle up together for heat. Our robes are fairly warm, and if we're cuddled- huddled up, then we should keep warm pretty well."

"Yes. That is exactly what I thought you meant." Ichigo said, managing to sound not at all convincing.

Tatsuki chuckled. "Look at you, all awkward." She grinned. "Don't worry- I won't molest you."

"Really freaking funny…" Ichigo grumbled. Finding the least uncomfortable-looking spot of dirt he could see, he lay down. Facing away from him, Tatsuki lay next to him in a spoon. Pulling her in close, they lay there, trying to sleep. It really did solve the warmth problem rather adequately, although Ichigo felt… strange, being in this position.

By the time that Yoruichi returned with improvised sheets, the two of them were already asleep.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Sitting by the candlelight, Aizen Sosuke pondered the future. His fukutaicho, dependable as she was, had fallen asleep on his couch, and he was left alone to think. These ryoka were… not unexpected, although he hadn't expected them to get so far in before detection- they had to be getting help from the inside. He smirked to himself. He shouldn't be surprised- undoubtedly, the person behind this was the only man who could possibly rival him as a plan maker.

This would delay his schedule up by a day or so, though. The news wouldn't really spread through the seireitei until the next day, and he needed people to know- he needed that sort of chaos as cover. He rubbed his chin, deep in thought- he'd have to ask his seconds to make sure they weren't found too quickly. They needed to create enough of a diversion before it was time to make his move.

His thoughts trailed back to Unohana, the gentle killer of the fourth division. If he had been sure she knew something, her comments would have- in its own subtle way- been a declaration of war. But did she know anything? Even assuming that she did, she couldn't possibly know enough to even hope to thwart him. No, only one person knew enough- and he was considered a criminal, huddling in the world of the living, using a ludicrously limited amount of resources to move against him. A group of teenagers, with some meager amounts of power? The man was brilliant, but this had to be considered a weak move. Desperation, naturally- he had to do _something_, even if the advantage was clearly not in his favour.

Yawning, Aizen turned towards his bed. There was plenty of time still, and he would win- there was no doubt. Neither the chief of intelligence, Urahara Kisuke or even Yamamoto himself could foil his plans; all would go as he wanted it to. It was a reassuring thought to fall asleep on.


	15. Sunglasses usually make people look cool

**Author's Notes:**  
Do you hear that? That is the sound of the 10.000 words count, which this chapter just shattered.

* * *

The next morning came, and with it, a commotion arose in the seireitei. The information that ryoka, intruders, rogue shinigami of considerable strength, had somehow made their way into the seireitei spread quickly among the shinigami of the Gotei Thirteen. Predictably, this lead to a severe increase of patrols in the seireitei, filling its streets with shinigami of all divisions and levels of power. The intention was to catch the intruders as soon as possible, quickly overpowering them should they chose to resist.

Not that Ichigo or Tatsuki knew anything about this, that is. The only thing they noticed was that in comparison to yesterday, the amount of shinigami that they saw was a lot higher than it was before, and that said shinigami seemed to be a lot more serious in their behaviour.

"So what do we do now?" Ichigo asked, looking up to the bridge, which currently somebody seemed to walk over. "Whatever is going on here, it can't be good. You don't suppose that they already know about us, do you?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Tatsuki said dismissively, standing just next to the bridge, also looking up. "So far, we've kept our cover up perfectly fine. This must be about something else."

As she talked, Yoruichi hoped first onto her shoulder, and then on the bridge itself. "Whatever it is, we shouldn't waste our time trying to figure it out. We'll just have to be careful from now on."

"Because we have been so totally careless until now..." Ichigo grumbled under his breath, too quiet for anybody to hear it.

"C'mon, you two! Right now, there's nobody else around. Get up here!"

Silently, the two of them did what Yoruichi asked them to, and climbed up. Just Yoruichi had said, no one was around – at least not now...

Silently, the two of them began heading down the streets. Neither of them were in a talking mood- Yoruichi had managed to scrounge- steal, most likely- a small breakfast of rice balls, but they were still tired, still hungry. Slowly, they headed deeper into the seireitei.

This lasted for all of two minutes, as one block down, they were approached by a patrol of five shinigami- officers, judging by their reiatsu. Ichigo and Tatsuki acted as if they had every right to be there, as if they were normal… but the bubble soon burst.

"There, men!" The patrol leader exclaimed. "That's the intruders! Take 'em alive- but don't be afraid to cut them down if you have to!"

If there was anything to really wake up a tired teenager aside from coffee strong enough to knock out a rhino, it would be the threat of nigh-fatal violence to their person. Instantly, the two of them took a stance, all weariness gone, replaced with the kind of awareness of life that only being closer to death provides.

"Oh, shit." Tatsuki mumbled. "Run? Fight?"

"Remember what Yoruichi said- run!" Ichigo hissed. The patrol was advancing on them, spreading out. "Can you dash to the side, get past them?"

"I am warning you," the patrol leader said, "surrender now, and you will not be harmed!" Something about his appearance made that hard to believe- not that they'd ever consider surrendering to begin with.

"I'll go left." Tatsuki said. "Shunpo?"

"You know it."

The patrol leader took one step further, when Ichigo and Tatsuki split. For one quick moment, it looked like they were charging- and then, in a movement so quick that no human eye would have caught it, they dashed to one side each, up against the walls and past the patrol, running as fast as their legs could carry.

"After them!" The patrol leader roared. Ichigo and Tatsuki didn't turn around to look- they had already dashed around the corner, and proceeded to jump over the next wall they saw, hoping to dodge their pursuers. Well, so much for stealth…

* * *

oOo

* * *

Elsewhere, the general commotion was not lost on Uryu and Orihime, though like Ichigo and Tatsuki, they did not have the slightest clue on what it could possibly mean. Figuring that their disguises would be hard to keep up today, the two of them ultimately decided to continue towards the center of the seireitei over the rooftops, be it convenient or not. Luckily enough, though, none of the shinigami that hurried to the streets looked up and saw them – if they were however doing it out of discipline or anxiety, Uryu could not tell, and wasn't exactly keen on finding it out, either.

In the end, however, the commotion did have at least one good thing about it: Despite having only been able to sleep about half the night, Uryu was wide awake. The night had been generally uneventful; there simply was so little activity in the noble house in the garden of which they had slept, that in the early morning, he even dared to sneak into the house to get something to eat and drink for him and Orihime. He had not been able to get much, but it was still enough to not leave the garden with an empty stomach.

Making their way across the rooftops, avoiding the shinigami in the streets, Uryu and Orihime reached the inner seireitei after only about an hour. Judging by the first impression, the only difference between the parts of the seireitei that they had been in until now, and the one that they were now entering, was that there seemed to be less noble houses around... which really made Uryu wonder why the inner wall was necessary to begin with. The prison in the very center was still a good distance away, so it couldn't be here as a safety-measure to keep prisoners in. So what was this wall for?

Obviously though, simply wondering about the matter did not give him any answers, so he simply continued walking forwards, still carrying the tome that Kukaku had given him as a part of his disguise, with Orihime following him closely. Right now, no shinigami were around, giving Uryu some slight hope that maybe, they might be able to make it to the center without actually being detected... but of course, the universe hated people who think that everything is going smooth, which it showed by having a shinigami come around a nearby corner, running towards them. He was most likely also heading towards whatever had caused the commotion elsewhere, which meant that with some luck, he might even run past them.

But they did not have that luck.

"Oy, you two! What are you doing here?" The man shouted, when he noticed Uryu and Orihime. He had dark brown, messy hair, a small beard, and was wearing a pair of sunglasses, and had a cigarette in his mouth. Judging from the tone of his voice alone, this guy might be harder to fool than the two third-seats...

Trying to quickly put on the image of the nasal, boring accountant, Uryu said, "We are here on official business. Who are you?"

"'Hasegawa Taizo, seventh division, third seat. And official business... zat so?" The man said, sounding more than a little skeptical.

"Of course!" Orihime insisted. "I am Shiba Nami, and we are on our way to complete an important errand for my cousin, Shiba Kukaku! Now, please stand aside-"

"Noble? Really?" Hasegawa said, sounding in between disdainful and humorous. "Then you wouldn't mind showing me your official clan crest? The one all nobles carry with them as a mark of their station?"

Orihime was set aback, but only for a second. Quickly, she began rummaging her clothes, as if she had really lost something. "...oh drat, I seem to have misplaced it. It must have been at that unsavoury division we passed earlier. No matter-"

"You two are comin' with me." Hasegawa said, giving them a grim look.

"I _beg_ your pardon?" Orihime exclaimed. "I am-"

"As noble as my toe nails." He shot back. "Nobles don't go carryin' round crests- and anyone this far in with an errand has paperwork. If you were noble, or even working for a noble, you'd know that."

Well, shit. This had been going so well, Uryu reflected- but then again, they had gotten so far in that a couple more hours of travel, and they'd reach their goal- if they only got past this guy.

"Both a' ya, get on your knees with your hands on your head!" Hasegawa barked. "I didn't know there were more than two ryoka- the captain'll be real pleased with this." He reached for his sword, quickly pulling it out.

"Orihime, get back!" Uryu shouted.

"Cute, pencil pusher- playin' the white knight? Now get down, or I'll have to stop playing nice."

"Please," Uryu said, throwing the tome and his disguise away, revealing his Quincy outfit, "...I don't think so."

Holding his hand up, the Quincy chain dangled from his wrist. In an instant, the bow formed, and within the next second, he had stringed an arrow and let it fly. For just a fleeting moment, Uryu hoped that he had done it, taken his enemy down quick and clean- but no such luck. Hasegawa stood a good thirty feet back, a small stream of blood trailing down his cheek.

"Shit... you're not bad." He remarked, spitting the cigarette out of his mouth. "That cross- Quincy, ain't you?"

"Indeed." Uryu said, readjusting his glasses- not at this point because he needed to; it had almost become a tic. "I suggest you run. I will show you no mercy."

"No can do. You're both coming with me." He held his blade up straight, pointing it towards Uryu. "Chill 'em, Arimasu no Fuyu."

Instantly, there was a cold gale, a gust of wind too cold to be naturally produced. Uryu steeled himself, ready to react-

and then suddenly, Hasegawa was right in front of him. There was no time to dodge; he'd get a clean hit in-

"Santen Kesshun, I reject!" Orihime cried, and suddenly a shield manifested, right between the officer's blade and himself. He knew it; it was one of her unique abilities- he had even helped her train it, and he was grateful for it now. Quickly, Uryu flashed back, moving out of range.

"What..." He said, not sure what had happened. He was prepared for the idea that a shinigami might move faster than he could react, but he should at least have been able to sense it- but he had felt nothing; he had just been there all of a sudden. How?

"Damn dirty tricks." Hasegawa said, taking a stance as the shield disintegrated, returning to Orihime. "Well..."

"Santen Kesshun!" Orihime cried, and Uryu could see something flash against the shield just briefly.  
"It's some... thing he uses!" Orihime cried. "I saw him use his sword, and then there was this blue kind of light, and you froze for just a second, Ishida-kun!"

"So that's his ability..." Uryu mumbled.

"You're quick to catch on, kids," Hasegawa said. "But your little tricks ain't nearly enough- and this ain't close to all my blade can do." He let out a burst of power, his reiatsu rising.

"Be prepared." Uryu said, but it was all he could manage before the officer had charged, coming at them furiously. Uryu used his hirenkyaku to move back, but it wasn't him he was after- there was a flash from Hasegawa's zanpakutou, and Orihime was encased in a cloud of ice.

"No more shields!" Hasegawa shouted. "Your turn, Quincy boy!"

Uryu grit his teeth. This was very much not good... this guy had disabled Orihime before she could even react, which meant that Uryu was now all on his own, and- he was once again charging towards him! Only narrowly, Uryu evaded Hasegawa by moving backwards with another hirenkyaku.

But Hasegawa didn't give up so quickly. "What's wrong, Quincy boy? Is dodging all that you're good at? No wonder your kind was exterminated in the war!" He roared, chasing after Uryu, who kept evading him.

In response, Uryu only growled quietly, and fired several arrows at Hasegawa. As to be expected however, none of the arrows actually found their target - though two did graze the shinigami, giving him some light cuts. So this man wasn't entirely out of his league, after all.

"Your aim is terrible, boy!" Hasegawa taunted, though Uryu could tell by his tone that he was somehow concerned... had he noticed that Uryu might be a match for him, after all?

Whatever the case, there was no use in just running away all the time. Uryu stopped dead in his tracks. Hasegawa was still charging at him, surprise now written all over his face. Expecting a direct attack, the shinigami attempted to dodge whatever was coming his way-

Only to find that Uryu had used his hirenkyaku to get behind him and fire at him from his blind spot!

Hasegawa was sent flying for a few feet, before landing on the ground. He had still been able to evade most of Uryu's shots, but a good number of them had still hit him: He was bleeding from multiple places, though none of his wounds seemed to be too deep. Uryu was already getting hopeful that that might already be enough for Hasegawa... but of course, it wasn't.

Not even a second after his impact, the man got back up. "Well, would you look at that. Seems like you're better than I thought... but that won't-!"

"Koten Zanshun, I reject! Tsubaki!"

Hasegawa turned around, just barely dodging, as Orihime's red projectile zoomed just past him. He had wasted too much time- she had gotten free. His zanpakutou was good, but it could only freeze one enemy at a time for a total of forty seconds- and the damn Quincy had spent those seconds dodging.

"Oh, fuck!"

He spun around to face Uryu, but predictably, he wasn't there.

"Running isn't all I'm good at at all." Uryu said coldly, holding his bow at Hasegawa's back, almost point blank with an arrow stringed. "But if I do get cut, I can't just shrug it off like you people. So I had to be patient."

"You-"

But Uryu didn't let him reply, letting the arrow loose. It hit dead center, running right through Hasegawa's back. The shinigami staggered, coughing blood, and…  
Most frustratingly, he didn't fall over dead.

"Yer damn… good." Hasegawa managed, just barely standing up.

"You're finished." Uryu said flatly.

"'Zat so?" Hasegawa said, taking a stance. He was bleeding profusely, but stood up nonetheless. In an instant, Uryu remembered his ability, and made to flash away-  
But too late. Hasegawa had already moved, and in one split second of paralysis, he had moved forward, cutting Ishida from shoulder to hip. As the paralysis let up, Uryu sank to his knees, pain overwhelming him. God… damn.

"See, you got cocky." Hasegawa explained, grabbing Uryu by the hair. "You got close for a hard hit, and that's good- but you didn't expect me to get back up." He put his sword at Uryu's throat. "A for effort, kid, but this is where it ends. Come quietly, and we'll see about that wound-"

"Tsubaki!" Orihime cried. Instantly, the little spirit charged forward, slamming into Hasegawa's chest. The man let out a gargle, and fell over, still conscious- but it seemed he had taken as much as he could. Struggling, Uryu got up to his feet. He was bleeding heavily, barely standing. His bow arm was still good, even though his string arm was now useless. Never mind- he could still finish this. Slowly, he formed the bow, taking the string in his teeth, letting an arrow form as he drew the bow up for a killing blow. It was the best thing to do here, to just get rid of him quickly. He let the arrow fly-

"Santen kisshun, I reject!" The triangular, transparent and vaguely orange shield formed, blocking his shot.

"Inoue-san." He said, looking at Orihime.

"He lost. You were going to kill him."

He blinked. "Yes. This is serious- we need to take care of this quickly and move on. He's an _enemy, _Inoue-san."

"He's a _person._" Orihime said firmly. "And he's already down."

Hasegawa groaned. "He's not even unconscious!" Uryu shot back.

Quickly, Orihime walked over, and unceremoniously slammed a fist into Hasegawa's face. He groaned again, this time seeming quite unconscious.

"There. Now he's unconscious. Now sit down so I can heal you both."

"But…" Uryu, feeling to faint to argue, sat down. Orihime called out her shimmering field, the one she used for healing- Soten Kisshun. As it enveloped the two of them and his wounds began to mend, he looked at Orihime. She didn't look angry, but there was… something about her.

"You must think I'm pretty naïve." She said, sounding oddly neutral. "We're in enemy territory, with people who want to kill us and all that. We need to be ready to kill. Right?"

"…yes, something like that." It was, in fact, what he had planned to say himself.

"Well, I don't like it." She said, shaking her head. "I'm not a child- I know that maybe some times, you don't have a choice- but when you do have a choice, you _shouldn't_ do it. He's not going anywhere and we can move on in just a minute- and he wasn't trying to kill us."

Uryu said nothing; she made a surprising amount of sense. He had half expected some tearful, half-hearted lament about how life was sacred and how killing was always wrong- but she was, metaphorically, on fire, reasoning at least decently.

"When you kill somebody, that's it. The end. Some people have to do it." She continued. "I know you're the one that knows the most about the afterlife, the one that has the most experience- but that doesn't mean it's right to kill a man because it's the easiest solution to a problem."

"And if it's one of those times when you have to?"

"Then do it. Do it, and do it quickly and without holding back. But unless that's the case, don't ever kill anybody. Especially not if it's some guy who is just doing his job."

"…okay then." He muttered. He hadn't expected this lecture, and he wasn't particularly inclined to argue. Women! No, people! People and their stupid, soft hearted notions and romantic views and… stupid, stupid logics and ethics. He grumbled.

"Feeling better?" Orihime asked, smiling.

"I suppose." Uryu said, standing up. He to admit, Orihime's healing was way more efficient than any of the Quincy healing arts that his grandfather had taught him: While he still felt very exhausted from the fight, no injuries remained, and he didn't feel any pain.

Which probably meant that it probably wasn't any different for Hasegawa.

"So if killing is out of the question, what do you think should we do about him?" Uryu asked, pointing at the unconscious shinigami.

"Hide him somewhere!" Orihime said nonchalantly. "It shouldn't be too hard to move him to some place where he won't be found right away, and maybe we'll even find something to tie him up. That way, it'll be a while before he'll be able to report us to anyone."

Uryu grunted. "We better find a place to hide him fast then. With all this commotion here, it probably won't be long before we come across the next shinigami, and if we're still carrying this guy around by then, we're essentially done for."

"No time to waste, then!"

"Right, right..." Uryu said absent-mindedly, trying to figure out how to carry Hasegawa around, ultimately deciding to keep him over his shoulder, which turned out to be every bit as uncomfortable and heavy as he had imagined.

Before he could make his way towards the next rooftop, Orihime spoke up once more. "Wait!"

Uryu turned around, not exactly happy about the prospect of carrying the man any longer than necessary. "What is it?"

Without saying a word, Orihime went around Uryu, and did _something_ with Hasegawa's head hanging over his shoulder. After a moment she had finished whatever she was doing, and walked in front of Uryu again... who could now see that she had taken off Hasegawa's sunglasses, and put them on herself.

"...What?" Uryu muttered more than he asked, utter confusion dominating in his tone.

"I'm wearing sunglasses now! Sunglasses are cool." Orihime exclaimed proudly. "Shall we go now?"

"...Yeah. Let's get going." Uryu finally said, after staring at Orihime speechlessly for almost a minute. There was no time to waste... especially not now, with them having to find a place to dump Hasegawa.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Ichigo rested his back against a wall, panting. "Did we shake them off?"

"Yeah, I think we did." Tatsuki replied. She, just like he, was trying to catch her breath.

"Thank god..." Ichigo mumbled. The patrol had chased them through what felt like half the seireitei – probably multiple hours of running away, looking for places to hide, and trying to evade their pursuers. By now, he understood very clearly why staying undiscovered had been so important: The shinigami of the Gotei Thirteen were quite obviously _very_ persistent when it came to catching intruders. In fact, the only reason why Ichigo and Tatsuki did stop at all was because they hadn't seen or sensed their pursuers for quite a while now – they had already thought several times before that they had shaken off their pursuers, only to find them coming around the next corner, though so far not once had this much time passed between these encounters.

At the same time though, they had lost Yoruichi during the chase, which meant that now they had absolutely no clue where they were or where they came from, and only had a vague idea into which direction they needed to go. At the very least they couldn't sense any shinigami in the general area, which meant that they at least didn't have to worry too much about being discovered for the time being.

"So which way do we go now?" Tatsuki asked, looking around.

Ichigo shrugged. "Towards the center, I suppose? I mean, it's not like we really have any other options as far as that goes."

Tatsuki scratched her head. "Oh, right... let's go, then."

Quietly, they got walking again. As they went on, their surroundings barely changed, and there still seemed to be nobody else around... it was almost as if the patrolling shinigami avoided this place, for whatever reason.

Before long, though, their walk was interrupted: After something like ten minutes, they saw two shinigami walking towards them- not part of a hunting group, apparently; the two of them were walking leisurely, talking loudly to one another- about battle and fighting, apparently.

"Stay cool." Tatsuki said quietly.

Ichigo nodded. With some luck, they could perhaps slip past them.

As they got closer, Ichigo got a good look at them. One was completely bald, with red markings at his eyes, his voice rough and intense. The other one looked every bit like a dandy, some sort of odd feathers attached to one of his eyebrows. His hair was dark black, and he moved his hands in a manner that would have, in the world of the living, invoked quite a few unfortunate stereotypes when coupled with his soft, effeminate voice.  
Not that there was anything wrong with that sort of thing.

As they got closer, Ichigo swallowed. Please don't let them notice, please don't let them notice…

"Oy, kids!" The bald one said, stopping. "Ain't you even going to acknowledge us, the ones what'll pound yer faces into the dirt?"

"How terribly rude." The other one remarked.

"There isn't even any dirt around here." Tatsuki said, gesturing to the cobblestoned street they were walking on. "So I guess that whole pounding thing will have to wait."

The bald man let out a laughter. "Funny." He said, drawing his sword. Immediately, Ichigo and Tatsuki drew theirs, taking stances. "I'm Madarame Ikkaku, third seat of the eleventh division."

"Wait, wait, Ikkaku!" The other one exclaimed.

"What is it, Yumichika?" Ikkaku growled. "I'm about to cut these punks up but good-"

"Who said you could take them both for yourself!" The dandy, apparently named Yumichika, said, sounding almost whiny. "You can't just hog all the good fights for yourself- two, just for you? For shame!"

"Well, they'll be no fun one on one, will they?!" Ikkaku shot back. "Look at 'em- good-for-nothin' punks with no experience! They probably never did see real combat before, and their reiatsu ain't that special."

"They got this far. You shouldn't be so greedy."

"Kids, help me out," Ikkaku said, turning to Ichigo and Tatsuki. "Yer a couple of total greenhorns- right? C'mon, it's obvious."

"Uh…" Ichigo said, not sure what to say to that. He hadn't expected an argument like this.

"You can underestimate us at your own risk, baldy." Tatsuki said, trying her best to sound tough.

"See? They've got spirit!" Yumichika said.

"You know as well as I do that if it's one on one, they'll just lose."

"Fine!" Yumichika said, pouting. "So let's settle this. There's no reason you should just get them for yourself."

"I'm third seat!"

"So what? You're not that much stronger!"

"Bullshit!" Ikkaku said angrily, getting in Yumichika's face. The dandy pushed back, forehead to forehead.

"Let's just settle who gets to fight, all right?"

"Yeah? How?"

"Jan-ken-pon. Best of three!"

"You're on, dumbass!"

"You're going down!"

Ichigo stared, mouth open. This was… absurd. They were going to fight- but only when they'd play rock, paper, scissors over who got the privilege?  
He watched, as the two shinigami played a rapid set, loudly screaming out 'Jan, ken, pon!' Finally, Ikkaku won out. He cheered loudly.

"Toldja!"

"I'm up next." Yumichika said sourly.

"All right, kids," Ikkaku said, taking a stance, letting his not insignificant reiatsu spike, "let's do this."

"Destroy them, Zangetsu!" Ichigo cried, as he unsheathed his sword, and his zanpakutou transformed.

"Strike, Raitora!" Tatsuki cried, and her zanpakutou split into the brass knuckles she was used to, a bit of electricity cracking. This definitely wasn't going to be easy...

Ikkaku let out a mockingly impressed whistle. "Woah, not bad! Even got shikai, the two of you! Seems like this'll be more fun than I expected!" He pulled a freakishly wide grin. "Go ahead then, kids! Attack me!"

Ichigo and Tatsuki stared at Ikkaku incredulously. "You... want us to make the first move?" Tatsuki asked, her confusion very apparent in her tone. "Isn't that kinda, you know, a rather stupid thing to do?"

"Geez, for a bunch of ryoka, the two of you don't really know a lot, do ya?" The bald man snarled. "Well then, dig the wax outta ya ears and listen really closely, because I'm gonna fill you in! Among the thirteen squads of the Gotei, there is one that is infamous among all the other ones. Its members all share one thing: Their unbreakable love for fighting! The strongest Squad of 'em all, the Eleventh! We all live for the thrill of being in a fact, of proving our strength in a situation where it's either living or dying! And of that division, I'm the third seat, Madarame Ikkaku! If I go all-out against the two of you right from the get-go, you won't even get a chance to hit me! So I'm only telling ya this once: Attack me! Show me what ya can do!"

Ichigo and Tatsuki exchanged a quick glance. Their silent conclusion: This man was definitely a nutjob.

But it would still be rude to just reject his offer.

Without saying a word, Ichigo and Tatsuki both charged forward at Ikkaku: Ichigo right from the front, Tatsuki going in an arc to try to get him from the side – third seat or not, there was no way that he would be able to evade or block both attacks.

In an instant, Ichigo had reached the bald shinigami – he reached back, and performed a downward slash... which Ikkaku effortlessly blocked, as to be expected.

Seeing this, and hoping to get in an actual hit while Ikkaku was busy with Ichigo, Tatsuki moved towards him, getting ready to ram her fist into the man- only for him slam his scabbard into her chest, sending her tumbling.

Ichigo drew in a sharp breath- could they really do this? His reiatsu wasn't greater than their own by a lot, but he had taken both their attacks almost effortlessly.

"Haha, not bad!" Ikkaku laughed loudly. "Attacking from two directions at once? Shikai? The two of you know what yer doing – time for me to get serious, then! Grow, Hozukimaru!"

He slammed his sword and scabbard together, and there was a light as it transformed, turning into a spear, with a long, sharp-looking blade at the end. Not wasting a second, Ikkaku charged, ferociously stabbing at Ichigo, moving at blinding speed. Was it even possible to thrust a blade so quickly?

Tatsuki got to her feet, but Ikkaku was already on top of that- slamming a foot in Ichigo's gut, sending him reeling back, he launched himself at Tatsuki, who just barely parried the first strike- she could feel it raking over her upper left arm, drawing blood, a sharp sensation of pain reminding her just how real this was. Just barely, she parried the next thrust, and the next- but then Ikkaku kicked her on the knee, and brutally, it slammed into the ground, Tatsuki standing on one knee. The pain dulled her senses; she was open-

And there was Ichigo, charging, roaring like a lion, coming at Ikkaku-  
And suddenly, the spear had run into his gut, passing his guard entirely. Ichigo let out a horrible wheezing kind of noise, almost sinking to his knees. Ikkaku took a few steps back, taking a relaxed stance.

"Too obvious angle, kid. You're a greenhorn- reading your movements is easy." He grinned cockily. It was obvious to Tatsuki, as she struggled to stand, ignoring the pain in her knee, that he was prolonging this intentionally- he could have killed Ichigo right there, beaten them both, but he was giving them, for a given value of the expression, a sporting chance.

"You attacked me to bait him." She managed, through her teeth.

"You must be the brains of this operation." Ikkaku said. "Well, that's enough talking!"

Again, he charged, thrusting at Ichigo, who just barely kept up, barely dodging the lethal strikes thrown his way. It was amazing, she noticed, how he could stand at all- a wound to the gut like that would have been game ending if they were in their human bodies.  
Ichigo was parrying as best he could, trying to strike- but this Ikkaku was a veteran, too fast and too experienced. Tatsuki wasn't going to be doing nothing, though- if he could see through her first move, it was time to do something else. Ignoring the screamed protests of her injured knee, she leapt forward, going into a rolling somersault. She sprung up, trying to hit his side- but Ikkaku hadn't forgotten her, and took a step back, neatly dodging her punch. Swiftly, he retaliated, slamming a fist into her face. She staggered back- but Ichigo was already at him, and she saw… something. In the short time he had taken to use one hand to punch her, something had happened to be forced back just a step to keep up with Ichigo's assault. So that was why- two on one was harder, and that was the challenge. It sounded obvious now that she thought of it, but it did mean that maybe, just maybe, they had a chance.

Quickly she hopped forward once more, going for a sweeping, low kick aimed at his legs, almost at a floor level. Ikkaku jumped over it easily, taking the chance to slam a foot into Ichigo's chest, sending him back.

Frustrated, Tatsuki lashed out. "Raitora!" She cried, punching her fist upwards, in one motion getting up and attacking. There was an electrical discharge, and there was a shock- and briefly, Ikkaku stopped, hopping back.

"Not bad, kids." He said, still grinning like a madman. "Good workout."

"Listen, Tatsuki," Ichigo said, breathing heavily, "I'm about to try and do something big. He's probably gonna block it- you're the speedy one, so you have to try and make something of it."

"Got it." She said, nodding.

"C'mon, then!" Ikkaku cried, sounding strangely happy. "I ain't got all day!"

"Have it your way." Ichigo said, raising Zangetsu. There was a surge in his reiatsu, and the blade begun to glow. "Getsuga… TENSHO!"

Immediately, a blue-ish arc of light shot out, and Tatsuki could feel the raw power coming from it- it was a technique she had seen him practice during spars, but she hadn't seen it perfected… till now.

Bracing himself, Ikkaku took the hit head on, blocking it with his Hozukimaru. He was being pushed back- but Tatsuki didn't stay to observe; she was already moving, slipping into the fastest shunpo she could control.

"Raitora, with me! Let's take him down, together!" And in her head, she could hear the weapon spirit sing with approval; it felt like it was lifting her up. She felt amazing, like she could kill planets…  
And then she was behind Ikkaku, her fists charged with lightning. She took the briefest of time to look for a target, and instantly aimed for his kidneys- if shinigami did have kidneys, that is. Slamming her right fist into his back, she discharged all the electricity she had mustered, screaming with triumphant fury.

Which, as she quickly realized, had come to soon.

While he was by now visibly exhausted and wounded, Ikkaku was in fact still standing... and the grin of his face showcased a very obvious bloodlust. "Awesome! Now _this_ is what I call a fight! This is the best fun I've had in years! You kids better keep this up!"

Ichigo couldn't believe his ears. This guy was at least as beat up as they were, and yet he still asked for more... hell, unless Ichigo completely misinterpreted his expression, he was only just getting started. If they really wanted to stand a chance, they would have to continue working together... a conclusion that Tatsuki, based on the look she was giving Ichigo, had reached as well.

Silently, Tatsuki charged once more at Ikkaku, getting ready to punch him... which the bald shinigami of course easily saw coming, evading her attack with a cocky grin on his face- thereby doing exactly what Ichigo had expected. When Ikkaku realized that Ichigo was behind him, getting ready to slash at his left arm, it was already almost too late, and he couldn't escape Ichigo's slash entirely: The attack hit. While the cut wasn't too deep, it was a cut nonetheless, it would at the very least still hinder his movements. Ichigo grinned.

"Well, would ya look at that." Ikkaku meanwhile said, inspecting the injury on his left arm. "That electric stuff must've shocked me harder than I thought, if I couldn't dodge some obvious attack like that... y'know, I might actually start to consider you kids a threat."

Determined to not let this opportunity of the enemy being distracted by his own injury go to waste, Tatsuki moved in to land another hit- only to be effortlessly knocked aside by Ikkaku's spear.

"Let's go, Tatsuki," Ichigo said, standing ready to attack again. "Both at once, we can take him."

Tatsuki nodded in understanding.

"If ya can talk, then ya can fight!" Ikkaku hollered. "C'mon, cut me up some more- if you can!"

Obliging him, Ichigo charge forward, holding his Zangetsu by his side, making for a heavy, wide horizontal swing.

It was only later, when he reflected on the fight in his head, that he realized how crucial the small move Ikkaku made was. As Ichigo charged, so did Tatsuki. Ikkaku did little, except take a step and a half forward at just the right time- and now Tatsuki's kick missed just barely, but Ichigo's sword was coming in-  
And Ikkaku caught it, blade to blade, guiding the hit into the ground. Quickly, he slammed the pommel of his spear in Ichigo's face, and Ichigo saw stars. Not missing a beat, Ikkaku turned to face Tatsuki's second attack, neatly catching her roundhouse kick with one hand, pushing it way up high, unbalancing her. Tatsuki stumbled backwards, and Ikkaku- having only seconds before Ichigo recovered- didn't waste the opportunity. Quickly, he grabbed her by the hair, slamming his forehead into hers. Tatsuki's vision was blurry; it was like being hit by a truck. It didn't end there- not letting go of her hair, Ikkaku brought her head down, slamming a knee in her face. Tatsuki, barely conscious, stumbled back. With deadly precision, Ikkaku lashed out, slashing her. The cut hit her clean, from shoulder to side. It had taken only three seconds. Blood splattered, and Tatsuki had to struggle to stay conscious. This was pain- pain unlike anything she had felt in training. It was pain from a wound, a real cut from an enemy who was doing his best to cut her down, even if it meant her death. This was what they were doing now.

Ichigo charged again, fighting through the blur of blunt trauma, slashing wildly. Ikkaku parried, taking a few steps back to adjust his position.

"You bastard!" Ichigo cried, the sight of Tatsuki so badly cut enraging him.

"That's one, punk. You're next."

"If you killed her…"

"You'll what? Swear revenge on her corpse?" Ikkaku sneered. "This ain't a tea party. She came at me with a lethal weapon, and I hit her back. If she was faster, it'd be me."

Ichigo had no reply. It was true, but he was too angry. Charging his sword, he cried,

"GETSUGA TENSHO!"

The blue arc of raw energy flew out, right towards Ikkaku. This time, the man dodged, rolling out of the way. Ichigo had already slipped into a clumsy shunpo, slamming his blade down at Ikkaku, for the first time with real killing intent. He was going to go down, even if it meant he died. He _had_ to go down!

Ikkaku only barely blocked, not even on his feet yet. This up close, Ichigo was at an advantage- the spear was a good weapon, but not at this range. Here, the heavy weight of his greatsword was superior. Grunting angrily, he pushed down at Ikkaku, who was down on one knee. Ikkaku pushed back, grinning that fierce smile. Letting out an enraged cry, Ichigo pushed harder, and managed to force Ikkaku's guard back even more. The third seat grunted, sounding a little less joyous now.  
Then, slowly, he began to push back, struggling up on both legs. Ichigo felt infuriated; the sheer strength in him seemed impossible.

"Good move, kid. Split!" He said. Then, he twisted his spear, and… part of it seemed to detach, bending freely. Only his good reflexes saved him- quickly, Ichigo pulled his head back. There was still a sharp sting, and warm blood poured down over his left eye. Confused, he took a step back- the pure anger was fading, and he was beginning to feel exhausted.

"I bet you thought this was just a spear." Ikkaku said, grinning. The spear had split into three parts, held together with chains. "It's actually a _sansetsukon_."

"I'm still standing here." Ichigo said, wiping blood from his brow- he had been cut at the forehead, although it seemed shallow.

"And so am I." It was Tatsuki's voice. She looked a mess- blood pouring from her wound, her face beginning to form some bad bruising, but she was standing, still taking a stance.

"Well I'll be damned." Ikkaku said, sounding almost impressed. "I guess you ain't half bad." Not wasting another word, he charged Ichigo, catching him by surprise- Ichigo still managed to block, but only barely. Ikkaku let out a series of quick stabs, spinning his three-part weapon rapidly. Ichigo didn't quite know how to counter it- he had never seen a weapon like this before.  
Then, before Ichigo had even seen it coming, Ikkaku had done it. Sidestepping a heavy downward slash, he stepped forward, running his blade forward with him. There was a sharp pain in Ichigo's side, and blood tricked down from his waist.

Looking triumphant, Ikkaku took a stance, looking down on the two beaten-up, bloodied teenagers. Looking angry, Ichigo turned around to face him, ignoring the burning pain in his side, the blood flowing freely, soiling his robes.

"What are you gonna do, kid? Fire that sword beam again? Didn't you learn from last time? This shit doesn't work!" Ikkaku mocked, laughing loudly.

Ichigo only grinned. "Whoever said that that was the only trick that I have up my sleeve?!"

* * *

"_Very well, Ichigo." Zangetsu said with an approving nod, observing Ichigo training in his inner world. "I would say that you have mastered the Getsuga Tensho now."_

_"'bout time..." Ichigo growled, still standing in a fighting stance. For about five days, he had been practicing this move now, trying to hit Zangetsu with it. Zangetsu had explained the Getsuga Tensho as a reliable way of attacking enemies from a certain range with what was essentially a sword beam, but until now, what Ichigo had been firing off had been far from 'reliable'. While his attempts at the Getsuga Tensho had been as strong as he hoped right from the start, the speed at which his shot flew had been a joke for most of the time – in fact, getting the speed of the attack right was what had been taking up most of the five days, though even now his Getsuga Tensho was far from hard to dodge._

_"So, with the Getsuga Tensho, you now have a basic ranged attack." Zangetsu continued, his tone as distant as always. "But should you come across an enemy who is fast enough to evade your attack, you will need a move that is more unpredictable in its nature, something that covers a wider area. This new move that I am going to show you will easily cover a rather wide area, making it easier for you to hit quick foes. Be warned, however, that this move is going to take a lot out of you – in all likeliness, at your current strength, you will not be able to use it more than one or two times at once."_

_Ichigo sat down, staring at Zangetsu. "So what's it called then, this new move?"_

_"It is the Moon Shard, the..._

* * *

"TSUKI NO KIZU!"

As Tatsuki watched, standing just a bit further down the street- she had staggered quite a bit, it seemed- she felt an enormous surge of power. She saw Ichigo raise his sword, and then there was a radiant blue glow as it came down, and she saw an arc of power go out, at perhaps forty-five degrees- five light blue lines of power going out in a wide angle, one of them slamming right into Ikkaku. The third seat held up his weapon, trying to parry- but he was blown off his feet, sent flying into a wall, which cracked under the pressure. The street where the attack had hit was ruined, five lines of shattered street stones marking just how big the arc had been, how destructive it was- even a part of the wall had been broken down. Ichigo had collapsed; the power he had released was apparently too much for him.

To her amazement, Ikkaku was getting up on his feet, although he seemed more than a little shaky, a third of his three-part spear torn off. He had a huge, bleeding wound on his chest, in a straight line- that had to be where Ichigo's attack hit him. Well, if he still wanted to fight…  
Slowly, she let her reiatsu build up, feeling the electricity flowing through her, conducting at her brass knuckles.

"Let's go, Raitora…" she mumbled, determination all in her voice.

"_Yes, master!"_ Raitora said, almost shouting her approval in Tatsuki's mind.

Knowing very well that this would be her final chance to do so, Tatsuki began charging one last time. Before she could even cross half of the distance between her and Ikkaku, the bald shinigami turned around and noticed her. Apparently realizing that he would not be able to perform a counter-attack, he attempted to dodge...

But Tatsuki wouldn't let him, not this time. Feeling the power charging once more, she directed it to her legs, sprinting forward, hitting Ikkaku with a blazing roundhouse kick.

"Raiendan!" She cried, and as she hit him in the midsection, she felt a satisfying, dull smack as her leg connected. She could feel his innards, his bones, and the power she was sending right into them. She barely felt the pain anymore; she felt like she could break his neck, grind his bones to dust, splatter his stupid face all over the wall…

But even when the attack connected, Ikkaku barely budged – he just stood there, grinning at Tatsuki... before giving her a light, silent and approving nod, and collapsing.

Somehow – somehow, they had survived the fight, no more than survived: They had _won._

As the emotional high begun to die down, Tatsuki let out a sigh of pure relief. Now she only had to somehow find a place where she and Ichigo could hide and recover. While she was close to collapsing herself, Tatsuki did her best to suppress this overwhelming feeling of weakness and exhaustion – if she collapsed now, it was all over. Tatsuki was already about to consider how she should go about carrying Ichigo... when a voice speaking up behind her reminded her that in the heat of battle and the light of their unexpected victory, they had forgotten something very, _very_ important.

"Well, what do you know… the two of you actually went ahead and won. And of course, Ikkaku just had to knock out one of you, and beat the other up enough so that you can't even put up a fight anymore." Panicked, Tatsuki turned around. Yumichika slowly approached her, unsheathing his sword as he did so. They had just barely beaten one- and the other was unhurt, while she and Ichigo could barely stand.

"This won't be any fun..." Yumichika continued, letting out a sigh. "I guess I'll just knock you out, and let the other kid die. We were told to let at least one of you live, so I guess you'll do. Don't worry though, I won't cause you any unnecessary pain. That simply isn't beau-"

He never got to finish that sentence, as in that particular moment, a dark, bare foot slammed into the side of his neck with surgical precision. Yumichika managed to halfway turn around to face his attacker, before falling to the ground unconscious, his face carrying a look of dumb surprise.

"Heh, still got it." At first, Tatsuki didn't recognize her- but it took only one closer look. It was Yoruichi, who- astonishingly- had managed to sneak up on a high ranked officer and knocked him out cold in one hit. How good was she?  
Tatsuki shook her head, and she realized why she hadn't recognized her at first- she was actually wearing clothes; a shinigami's shihakusho to be specific.

"Now, isn't that just typical? I leave the two of you alone for just a couple of minutes, and you're already getting yourselves killed... be glad that I brought along some help when I felt this fight going on." Yoruichi said, relief, concern and disapproval clearly audible in her tone.

Tatsuki wanted to give a snarky reply, or just outright thank Yoruichi for making it in time, but she could no longer fight the exhaustion. With relief washing over her, Tatsuki finally allowed herself the luxury of passing out.

Only seconds after Tatsuki passed, another shinigami passed around a corner: A young man with chin-length black hair, and a very hurried expression on his face. Upon the sight of the four unconscious shinigami on the ground in front of him, he let out a gasp. "Oh my god, it's really true! These Squad Eleven madmen really have attacked new recruits! How fortunate that you were able to knock them out!"

"Told you." Yoruichi said, doing her best not to snicker. It really had been an incredible stroke of luck to come across this Squad Four kid, Yamada Hanataro – with someone from the medical squad, dealing with the injuries that Ichigo and Tatsuki had received should be very possible. And better yet, he was gullible enough to belief a story told to him by a random shinigami who wouldn't even tell him their division, and didn't ask any questions...

"I am so sorry for doubting, Yoruichi-san! I'll be healing them right away!" The young shinigami declared eagerly.

"Y'know, I'm all for that, but would you mind if we did this somewhere else? It would be a bit problematic if these two were to wake up during that, and there's still these ryoka wandering about, you see."

"B-But I can't carry these two recruits all the way to the Squad Four barracks by myself!" Hanataro protested.

"Oh, don't worry, I know a safe place where we can go to for now. And really, the carrying part shouldn't be too much of a problem, either." Yoruichi said, picking Tatsuki up. "Come on, kid- let's get a move on. "

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was evening, not quite night, when Byakuya headed home. The average shinigami workday had ended, troops returning to their barracks for whatever leisure time they had. Normally, Byakuya would work overtime- there was something comforting about the routine of work, and there was nobody he trusted more to ensure a competent work output than himself, but just for today, he had allowed himself to leave on time. Ryoka were on the loose, but they would be found soon- the second division was on the case, and Byakuya did not envy those who ended up in their custody.

But that was really just an excuse. It was true, but it was an excuse still- the truth was that he needed to meditate, to take some time to collect his thoughts. Normally, he was the very image of stoic professionalism- or at least he'd like to think so; the men certainly seemed to think so- but lately, things… had worn on his mind.

Deep in thought, he wandered through the halls of his mansion, towards his study. Servants scuttled around here and there, going about their business, all of them avoiding him carefully. As usual, of course.  
Only his head servant, the only one who had the right to approach him without much curtseying, addressed him as he came through.

"Shall I take your haori, oyakata-sama?" The man was elderly; he had been in their service since the time of his grandfather.

"It won't be necessary." Byakuya said shortly.

"Dinner will be served soon, oyakata-sama-"

"I will be in my study." Byakuya said, his tone making it clear that he was not to be disturbed.

The old servant bowed. "Understood. Shall I have some food sent to your room?"

"Later, perhaps." Byakuya said, walking past the old man. Finally, he was in his room, his most private quarters- not as used as a private room would usually be; he spent many nights at the division when needed.  
Slowly, he eased out of his sandals, taking off his scarf and folding it neatly. Carefully, he hung his haori up on a rack- a servant would come by later for it, and it would be clean and ironed by tomorrow.

He looked around for a second. It was a fine room- it had many bookshelves, filled with classic literature, some of it even imported from the real world. A few paintings hung there too; they were from a happier time when his late wife Hisana had insisted on 'enriching' the atmosphere of the room. Thick rugs covered the floor- he had never much cared for them, but it was customary that a clan head have the most expensive luxuries, whether he made much use of them or not. A fairly spartan bed, a practical desk filled with papers- paperwork, calligraphy, correspondence from other nobles- and above it, a small portrait of her, of Hisana.

Sighing, he took a seat on the floor, legs crossed. Putting Senbonzakura, his treasured zanpakutou, in his lap, he closed his eyes and let himself relax, his mind wandering…

What a time it had been, these last few months. Rukia had finally managed to insist hard enough on an assignment in the world of the living, and now… now, she was facing a death sentence for violating the law.  
She, his beloved little sister, the only thing Hisana had cared about more than himself. She, the little sister who his wife had spent years looking for before succumbing to a terminal illness, who he had adopted and taken in and sworn to protect, would now face death before his very eyes. He was calm, serene- but something inside him was aflame with anger that he wasn't angry, that he was just prepared to let this happen, that he would let the law step on his honour as a man and a noble.

It hadn't always been like this. He had once been emotional, furious, hotheaded; the he of his youth was not the same person he was now. Time had tempered him, but sometimes he felt like something had been lost along the way, especially after Hisana's death.  
How he had loved her… it was a sensation unlike any he had known ever before, a thrill greater than the fear of death or the triumph of victory; it was something he had treasured every day. It was why Rukia mattered; she was all what was left of her wishes and dreams.

And he was going to let her die.

A small part of him roared at him furiously; he should take up his sword, break down her cell door, take her and run, kill everyone in his way…  
But that was not who he was. His love mattered, Rukia mattered, but so did the law and the family he represented. He was not some selfish tyrant; he was the head of the most powerful noble family in the Soul Society. To become lawless over something as trivial as personal affection would be… unthinkable.

But then again, he could not let his promise to Hisana be besmirched either; trampled upon by circumstance.

It was clear to him- he hadn't thought much about it, but it was obvious. There was only one outcome that would satisfy honour.

He would watch Rukia die, convicted overly harshly for a petty crime, because _the law was the law and the law is everything._

And then he would use his beloved Senbonzakura to commit seppuku.

His family would miss him greatly, the Gotei which he had devoted his life to would lose a great asset, his clan's status would be in jeopardy, and he would be dead- but honour would have been satisfied. That, and only that, was sufficient compensation for betraying his oath to Hisana.

It was quite simple, really.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Meanwhile, in the barracks of Squad Thirteen, today's work was still not quite done yet. For many years now, the Squad's captain, Ukitake Jushiro, had been suffering from an illness which, while usually not hindering him in doing his duties, did often enough claim its price, forcing him to take a rest even when there was work to do. Since people falling ill in Soul Society was exceptionally rare, little could done to do something against it, other than identifying it as tuberculosis, forcing Ukitake to simply live with the illness, whether he liked it or not. While normally, this presented not too big of a problem, the timing for this current issue couldn't have been worse. Ryoka in the seireitei – in all of his years in the Gotei Thirteen, he had never heard of something like this occurring. The result of the ensuing additional paperwork in combination with the time lost from his forced rest: Overtime.

Thankfully for Ukitake though, the two third seats of his division, Kotetsu Kiyone and Kotsubaki Sentaro had stayed around to help him with work, so that everything remained within the realm of the manageable. In any other division, this sort of task would also have fallen on the division's vice-captain, but unlike all the other divisions, the Thirteenth Squad currently had no vice-captain. The last man to hold this position, Shiba Kaien, the then head of the Shiba clan, had died several years ago in battle, and since then, there had been no one capable of filling the void that he left.

At the memory of his vice-captain, Ukitake sighed. In a way, the man was lucky to have died all these years ago... if he were still alive, the man would be having a hard time right now. After all, it had been he who had been more or less mentoring Kuchiki Rukia back when she first joined his division, showing her the way and being her friend... yes, if Kaien were still alive, the situation would most likely unsettle him even more than it did Ukitake, which was saying quite a bit.

To Ukitake himself, Kuchiki Rukia had always been a promising and reliable member of his division. He had been certain that given enough time, she would grow to become a worthy vice-captain to his Squad, and a good successor to Kaien. Ukitake still could not believe that she would have committed a crime that would justify her execution. When he had first heard of the sentence, Ukitake had protested, inquired how death would be a suitable treatment for the crime of creating a temporary substitute shinigami... but his protests fell on deaf ears, and were ignored by the Central Forty-Six, the noble council ruling the Gotei.

Aggravating as it might have been, Ukitake had no choice but to refrain from looking any further into the situation. The decision of the Central Forty-Six stood, and it would not be changed. The law was the law.

"...Taichou? Are you even listening?" The voice of Sentaro brought him back to reality. The third-seat had been reading various reports made by member of his Squad to him, when his thoughts had started to drift.

"I'm sorry, Sentaro, my mind must have slipped a bit." Ukitake said, in an apologetic tone that one would usually not expect a captain of the Gotei Thirteen to use in front of his subordinates. "Could you please read the report to me once more?"

"Of course, taichou." Sentaro said patiently. "We have several reports from unseated shinigami of our Squad having spotted the ryoka, though most of them just seem to be overreacting. We currently have little reliable information regarding the ryoka's actual location, but they were last seen heading towards the general area of the Squad Eleven barracks"

"When were they last seen?"

"Six hours ago. In all likeliness, the ryoka have already found a hiding place for this night by now. The only ones who might have a chance of finding them right now are Soifon-taichou's squad."

"I see..." Ukitake said quietly. That his squad's chances of actually finding the ryoka were rather slim barely surprised him: After all, in comparison to other squads, his squads notably lacked fierce fighters – which usually barely concerned Ukitake.

"And..." Sentaro meanwhile continued "here's also a report by one of the rookies from our squad, Shino. According to her, our sixth seat Kajomaru Hidetomo has been missing for over a day, without any traces in regards to his whereabouts... which means he went missing around the same time that the ryoka are believed to have entered the seireitei."

"You mean that they could have killed him."

"It is quite possible, taichou. Hidetomo has last been seen in the general area of the west gate – it could very well be that he spotted the ryoka, and they killed him to remain undetected."

Ukitake frowned. "I will not consider Hidetomo to be dead until his corpse is found. We will mark him as missing, not dead... once the ryoka have been caught, we can always ask Soifon-taichou to question them about him. I am pretty certain that she will easily be able to find out whether they have something to do with his disappearance..."

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Yer tellin me what now?"

Ayasegawa Yumichika was not in a good mood. His neck hurt like it had been hit by a speeding boulder- more like a landslide, actually- and he didn't even know who had done it, and the two punks he had been supposed to catch had slipped away, probably carried by whoever knocked him out- Ikkaku had done a number on them, no doubt.

And now he had to explain this to his captain, the infamous and very imposing Zaraki Kenpachi, most fearsome swordsman in the Gotei Thirteen.

It wasn't that he was afraid- his captain wasn't the kind to punish you for failure so long as you put your back into it and fought, but this was… awkward. Not only had they beaten Ikkaku- fucking unbelievable!- but they were gone. A chance at a major feather in their hat had turned into an embarrassing defeat, even moreso because at least Ikkaku had been beaten by tons of upfront damage, while he had been knocked out without more than a bruise to show for it.

"They beat Ikkaku. Hard fight, but those two punk ryoka beat him." He said, awkwardly rubbing his sore neck.

"You serious?" His captain said. His muscular, lean body, scarred face and torn haori made him look intimidating as always, but for now, he sounded almost confused.

"Dead serious. You could go look at Ikkaku- he's in intensive care right now. I doubt he'll be able to answer any questions any time soon, though, taichou."

His captain grinned. "That's the best news I had all day." Oh, shit… well, those two kids were goners now.

"If you can find them." Yumichika remarked. "Whoever knocked me out has been keeping them hidden so far."

"They've been heading inwards all this time." His captain said, grinning and shaking his head approvingly. "Yeah, all I need to do is head inwards even faster."

"Yay, Ken-chan's gonna fight!" Well, double shit. Little Yachiru, the only person Squad Eleven feared more than Unohana Retsu- fukutaicho of the squad as well as Kenpachi's adoptive daughter- had just popped out of seemingly nowhere. "Is there gonna be blood? Is there?"

"Ain't there always?" Kenpachi said, grinning as the little tyke- who Yumichika knew was over fifty years old in terms of actual years- climbed onto his back. "Yumichika, ya got one minute- tell me how Ikkaku lost."

"He underestimated them. He thought it was a light workout, and then they caught him by surprise. Several times. He underreacted. If he had been serious, he could have killed one quick and dealt with the other."

"Good man." Kenpachi said, nodding approvingly. "Now tell me the rest."

Yumichika sighed. He did not envy those two punks, not the least.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was evening, and Uryu and Orihime were quite close now. They had managed to dodge most patrols, using side streets, warehouses, barracks, whatever they needed as cover when Uryu sensed a patrol coming. There had been some close calls, but they were, as of yet, undetected. Now, they approached a massive stairwell. It wasn't far now.

It struck Uryu just how massive this place was. They had walked all day, and were only now approaching their goal- granted, a lot of the time had been spent hiding, but it was nevertheless a large place, this Gotei Juusantai- maybe that was why they hadn't been found, because searching every nook and cranny in a place like this should logically take forever.

Shaking off these thoughts, Uryu focused. There was a lot to worry about, like how Ichigo and Tatsuki were faring, but right now, they needed to focus only on themselves.

And yet, Uryu could not help but to worry.

Just blast this Kurosaki and all the others! Before Uryu had met him, Tatsuki and Orihime, something like this would barely have mattered to him. If back then had been on this mission, he would have just went on without worrying... but then again, back then, he would not have risked his life to save that of a shinigami.

Uryu sighed. There was little denying that Ichigo, Tatsuki and Orihime had changed him... the only real question was whether it was for the better or not.

"Is something wrong, Ishida-kun?" Orihime asked, having without a doubt heard him sigh.

Walking just ahead of her towards the stairwell, Uryu turned around without slowing down. "No, it's alright."

At the sight of Orihime's face, Uryu could not help but to grin: She was still wearing the sunglasses that she had "borrowed" from Hasegawa. Uryu couldn't really bring himself to ask her about why she was carrying them around. It wouldn't exactly help their disguises, but by now, it was just silly to even try to keep them up.

"Ishida-kun..." Orihime interrupted his thoughts once more, pointing at something ahead of them both. With a bad feeling, Uryu turned around to see a shinigami with a very familiar hair color and style running towards them...

"Act normal!" Uryu hissed under his breath. This vice-captain guy – Renji? - didn't seem to have noticed them: He moreso seemed like he was hurrying to get to whichever place the patrols had headed off to.

Trying to ignore his own increasing nervousness, Uryu kept walking forwards calmly. Pineapple-hair was fifty meters away from the... thirty... ten... five-  
He was past them. Uryu was already about to let out a sigh of relief, when he heard a voice from behind them.

"Wait a minute... don't I know you, glasses-kid?"

* * *

**Author's Notes:**Here's a few phrases that probably need some translating to them.

_Oyakata-sama_: Polite addressal from subordinate to superior, probably along the lines of "master".

_Arimasu no Fuyu_: Supposed to translate to "winter's breath".

_Tsuki no Kizu_: Literally "the wound in the moon".

_Raiendan_: "Lightning combo", or something along those lines.


	16. Glasses are a defining character trait

**Author's Notes:**  
And as to be expected, another chapter at over 10.000 words. Get used to it.

* * *

It occurred to Yamada Hanataro that perhaps there was something not quite as it should be about his current situation. It was all too easy to believe that eleventh division soldiers would harass new recruits, but now that he thought about it, he had never heard of them actually attacking them, sword and all- and one of them had been Madarame Ikkaku, the fearsome third seat, who spent his days fighting, drinking- not bullying people weaker than him, as far as he knew.

In fact, it had looked a lot more like a battleground than anything else. This he could perhaps have overlooked, but where he was now- a sewer tunnel, far under the Gotei's streets- was hardly the most sanitary place to treat patients either. In fact, it was a terrible place to go in general, unless you needed a quick shortcut through the Gotei and knew the way.

And Yoruichi-san hadn't said what rank she was, or even her full name- and she didn't have a zanpakutou on her, or even shoes. Right now she was out getting more medical supplies, but there was something… odd about her.  
He was used to taking orders from people, so he hadn't questioned her- and there was no doubt the two young recruits needed treating. But this, Hanataro deduced, was fishy. More than a little fishy, actually.

"Um," he began, addressing the taller one. They had recovered at least partially now; he had spent over six hours working on their wounds, with conventional medicine as well as kido. It had to be night outside by now. "So uh, you're…"  
He trailed off.

"What?" The tall one said, scowling. Hanataro resisted the urge to cower in fear.

"Don't be so hostile, Ichigo." The other one, a black haired girl, said. "He probably just saved our lives."

"I'm not hostile." Ichigo murmured.

"You're not with a squad, are you?" Hanataro dared ask.

"Bright kid." Ichigo remarked. "You wanna do this, Tatsuki?"

The other one- Tatsuki- sighed. "I am Arisawa Tatsuki, and this is Kurosaki Ichigo. We're the criminal terrorists who just broke into your big spiritual city-thingamabob. Nice to meet you."

"N-n-nice to meet you too." Hanataro said, swallowing. Oh, _crap_. He was trembling now, there was no hiding it.

"Don't look like we're going to eat you alive or something." Ichigo grunted. "We're not murderers. We just have something we need to do."

"And don't be afraid of Ichigo here." Tatsuki added. "He has a mean look, but he's really a huge softie."

"Uh… so can I go?" Hanataro asked, after taking a small while to collect himself.

"Uh, I don't think so." Ichigo said. "I mean, we're not gonna kill you, but you know where we are. Let's just wait for Yoruichi to come back."

"…okay." Hanataro said timidly.

Luckily, Yoruichi came back before long, carrying a small box.

"Fresh bandages, pain medication, food, antibiotics… I think I got all we need here. You- Hamtaro, right?" She pointed at Hanataro. "Have a look."

She held out the box to him, and he took it. Everything looked fine- she had even brought tweezers, thread and needles, stuff he could use to sew up injuries as needed.  
His attention was diverted pretty quickly, though.

"Ah, finally…" Yoruichi mumbled, and to Hanataro's complete bafflement, she undid the sash to her pants, and let them slide down along with her jacket.  
It seemed she was the kind of person who didn't believe in underwear, because she was standing there, quite naked.

"Th-th-th-th-!" Hanataro stuttered, his face going red.

"Clothes always feel so confining." Yoruichi said, stretching herself casually. "What's the matter, kid?"

"You-you-you're n-n-nnn!" Hanataro spluttered, averting his eyes, closing them as well to be extra safe.

"Naked." Ichigo said flatly, yawning, apparently not paying much attention to the fact that a dark-skinned sex goddess was standing naked right in front of him. What kind of people were they?! "Don't fret- she does this a lot."

"All the time." Tatsuki agreed, sounding like it was the most normal thing in the world. "You get used to it."

"I'm not naked _all_ the time." Yoruichi objected.

"No, only most of the time."

"Well, that is," Yoruichi said, and Hanataro could hear her voice getting darker, "because clothes do not suit this form. At all. You can look now, kid."

Carefully, Hanataro peeked in between his fingers, afraid of what he'd see- which was, as it turned out, a black cat. Hanataro's embarrassment was replaced with stunned confusion. "Huh?"

"Don't ask. We don't know how she does it either." Ichigo said, shrugging. "So what's our next move?"

"Right. The next move for the two of you are getting healed, and nothing else." Yoruichi said bluntly "With how much baldy beat you up, it will take several more hours until you can move out again, even with Hamtaro here healing you."

"What?!" Ichigo shouted. "We don't have the time for this! We need to get moving right away! We only have-"

"Over a week and a half left. We have way more than enough time. Maybe you two even get lucky, and your friends manage to reach their goal before us." Yoruichi said, cutting him off, purposefully avoiding saying anything that Hanataro wasn't supposed to know.

Ichigo didn't say anything in response, resorting to simply frowning. Observing the odd group, Hanataro gladly followed Ichigo's example.

"So... what should I do now?" He asked shyly, using the chance to speak up before anyone else did so.

"You heal them. I thought that was obvious?" Yoruichi asked with that unfittingly low voice of hers – just another thing about the entire situation that irritated Hanataro, to say the least.

"But what am I supposed to do when you get found?" Hanataro whined, quite close to the point of despair.

"Don't worry kid, you can always just tell them that we took you hostage." Yoruichi suggested, obviously rather amused by Hanataro's personal dilemma. "With Ichigo's permanent frown, they should believe you right away."

"I'm not frowning all the time!"

Yoruichi gave him a smug grin. "No, only most of the time."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Uryu cursed inwardly. This was just his luck – thousands, if not tens of thousands of shinigami in the Gotei Thirteen, and he just had to run into one of the two that had met him before and knew who he was. But on the other hand, maybe this might be a chance for payback against this guy? Uryu pulled a fiendish grin.

Without even bothering to respond to pineapple-hair's question, Uryu whirled around, forming his energy bow in his hand, and fired a series of arrows at the shinigami. He obviously did not expect to hit the shinigami right away, but it would buy him at least some time – time enough to hopefully work out a quick strategy. The last time Uryu fought against him, the shinigami, Renji, had outright demolished him... if he wanted to win this, he had to be very careful. Grabbing Orihime by her arm, Uryu used a _hirenkyaku_ to move to the side and gain some distance, and get Orihime further away from Renji, too.

"Gonna take that as a "yes", then." Renji noted, effortlessly dodging Uryu's attack while doing so. "Wouldn't have thought that I'd meet ya again here, Quincy – are you and yer girlfriend with these ryoka? Here to re-" He interrupted himself for whatever reason, his expression shortly slipping out of his determined glare "-to rescue Rukia?"

"Why would we give you vital information like this? If you want to know anything, you'll have to beat it out of us." Uryu said, attempting to block out his rising nervousness by sounding strong and ignoring the shinigami's comment about Orihime.

Renji clenched his fist, and rubbed his neck, stretching himself. "Ya know, kid," he said, a foul look on his face, "I'm actually grateful you popped up. I'm in a really bad mood- beating the snot out of you will probably help."

With that, he drew his zanpakutou.

"Oh, and one thing, just so you know just how _fucked_ you are- whenever a shinigami with the rank of fukutaicho or taicho go to the world of the living, they have a seal placed on them. We're so strong that if we let loose, we could kill people without even knowing it. Level blocks. You know back when we first met? The seal had me at one fifth of my real power."

As he spoke, his reiatsu began to spike. Uryu swore inwardly- beating that third seat had been a close shave, and Renji's power was so absurdly above that, it would have been laughable if not for the fact that getting cut to little bits is generally considered to be a very unfunny experience.  
Steeling himself, Uryu let himself feel all the reiatsu around him, focusing on the control he excelled at as a Quincy. He had to believe he could do this; if he couldn't, then they were both done for-

And then, Renji had moved. He felt it happen, the shunpo. He felt the movements he was making in the spiritual particle fields that made up this entire reality, coming at him…

And there was nothing he could do. This was ludicrous speed.

A fierce look on his face, Renji slammed the hilt of his sword into Uryu's gut, and he could feel the air getting knocked out of his lungs. As he doubled over, Renji slammed a balled fist into his face, sending Uryu staggering back, almost losing his glasses. Raising his sword, Renji went for a hard deep cut-

"Santen kesshun!" Orihime cried, and the orange shield formed, blocking Renji's strike.

Renji shout her a glare most foul. "Ya know, girl, if you step in here, you're an enemy too. I don't give women any special treatment."

"Good!" Orihime shouted, her voice shaky. "Because we're in this together! If you want to beat Ishida-kun, you have to beat me too!"

Uryu blinked. She had more nerve than he would have expected.

"Fine then. Don't say I didn't warn you." Renji said. He lowered his blade, and ran a hand across it. "Howl, Zabimaru!"

And the blade changed shape, becoming that huge, segmented sword, lined with spikes. "Since you volunteered, you're first." He said coldly, and raised the blade. He lashed out, and the sword stretched, stretched, each segment being held together with some sort of fiber, extending towards Orihime at breakneck speed.

"Oh no you don't!" Uryu shouted. He moved forward like never before, his _hirenkyaku_ feeling like slow motion-  
And then he was in front of Orihime. He had no idea if he could really do this…

And the whip-sword missed its mark.

"What?" Renji said, perplexed. "Don't tell me you actually stopped it, human."

"I couldn't stop that, no," Uryu said, blood trickling down from his right hand, "but don't forget who you're dealing with- I'm a Quincy. Stopping an attack like that isn't possible on my level, but diverting it, using the flow of reiatsu? Oh yes."

"You better not underestimate us." Orihime said. "We're friends, and we came here for a friend- we'll win, no matter what."

Renji's face twisted into a mask of rage. "You petty humans think you can talk about Rukia as a 'friend'? You don't know her, and if it wasn't for your shitty town, she wouldn't be in this situation to begin with!" He raised his sword again.

"That's still better than a friend who just leads her towards her own death!" Uryu shot back, moving him and Orihime further away from the shinigami. He had only made a wild guess, since he wasn't entirely sure whether Renji really was a friend of Rukia's or not – but judging by his reaction, Uryu had hit spot-on.

"Whaddaya think you know, you Quincy shit?! The likes of you have no right to criticize a shinigami who just follows his orders to uphold the balance of the world!" Renji roared, extending his sword to a length of several meters and letting it fly about wildly. "Who knows, maybe the Central 46 will even do me a favor and let Rukia live if I capture them some intruders!"

"Say what you will, it makes no difference! We will not be stopped here!" Orihime spoke up, much to Uryu's (short-lived) surprise. "Santen Kesshun, I reject!" Instantly, a shield formed in front of her, blocking the approaching blade.

With a grunt Renji retracted his blade, and gave them a slightly confused stare. "The hell is up with you, girl? That's not the power of a shinigami, and neither is it some sorta Quincy power – what are you?" He snarled, dashing towards Uryu.

Uryu's mind began to race. There was no telling whether the shinigami was after him or Orihime, and with that whip-sword of his, the nature of his attack was more or less unpredictable. What should he do? Get out of the way, and hope that Orihime would be able to protect herself in time? Attack, and attempt to get him to back off? "Koten Zanshun, I reject! Tsubaki!"

Before Uryu could come to a conclusion, Orihime had made her move, firing her red projectile at Renji. Not having expected an attack from Orihime, he quickly jumped to the side and backed off – for now. "Don't just stand there, Uryu! We'll need to fight together if we want to win!"

"R-right!" Uryu said, readying his bow. This was the real thing- a shinigami at full power, the same one that had destroyed him in the world of the living.  
But then again, he was not without advantages of his own. To a Quincy, an environment made entirely of reiatsu would mean power only limited by one's own ability to control reiatsu. Maybe, just maybe, if he was careful…

Renji wasn't giving him time to think, though. Letting out an angry cry, he let fly his Zabimaru, the long sword-whip lashing out against him. Quickly, Uryu slipped into his fastest _hirenkyaku_, narrowly dodging the sword, reappearing twenty feet to the right- but the sword was already coming at him again, fast and furious. Again, he dashed away, trying to get the time to shoot- he could shoot, sure, but to actually hurt somebody of this caliber, he'd need good aim _and_ more than a little power behind him.

"Ishida-kun, don't dodge!" Orihime cried. Uryu tensed- it seemed such a weird thing to say, but… then he understood, and nodded, standing still.

"Ora, ora, ora!" Renji cried, the sword swiping at him from the side- and then there was the shield, forming just at his side. It cracked and broke under the impact of the sword, but it was enough- the sword had lost enough momentum. Quickly, Uryu leapt forward, energy gathering from all around him to his next arrow. Going through the air, he used Zabimaru's segments as a stepping stone forward sailing up over Renji- he'd come in close, and get a good hit off.

It took less than a second, but there he was, bow drawn, a cold expression on his face as he aimed towards Renji's head. No use trying not to kill him- he wasn't sure this attack could do it even if it hit head on. At just the right time, he let the arrow fly-

And Renji took a quick step to the side. For a nanosecond, Uryu allowed himself to feel frustration- just how damn fast were these shinigami?  
He could hear a grunt; he had hit something, apparently, but…

"Hado no sanjuuichi: shakkaho!"

It was a kido, no mistake about it, and he couldn't dodge it. He was still airborne, and it was too close. The spell slammed into him, and it felt like he had been rammed by a bull. He just barely managed to land on his feet.

"Tsubaki!" Orihime cried, her little attack sprite flying towards Renji. Renji dodged it, but it seemed too small for him to hit with his sword- and at the same time, an orange bubble of sorts formed around Uryu. Quickly, he sent a couple of arrows towards Renji- what was this?

"I'm trying something new, Ishida-kun!" Orihime shouted. "Keep going- I'll support you!"

"Got it!" Uryu said, readying his bow.

"Punk kids." Renji said, sending out his sword once again. "Stand still, will ya!"

Uryu dodged. It was fast and furious, he noticed- but not too difficult to evade. Renji was a strong opponent, much stronger than him most certainly, but his short-to-mid-range style of fighting was poorly suited for somebody with speed and control like his. Perhaps…  
-this was the wrong time to think about their chances of victory! Just narrowly, the whip-sword missed his face, its tip crashing into the ground just a few feet behind him.

It was like trying to evade a snake, Uryu thought. The only exception was that instead of just the head, the entire blade would mean death if it hit. But... between Renji swinging his sword, and it actually hitting the target, there was a delay caused by the length of the thing – a very small delay, but easily more than enough for Uryu to evade it. Enough to avoid certain death.

With an annoyed grunt, Renji retracted his blade. For just a second, he stared at Uryu, raising his eyebrow... before once again charging at Uryu headfirst. As he came at him, Uryu fired several arrows at the shinigami, who in turn extended his sword towards Uryu once more.

Almost instinctively, Uryu slipped into another _hirenkyaku_ to evade the attack... and then suddenly, the blade was gone, and Renji was standing right in front of Uryu. The extending of his sword had been a feint attack, Uryu immediately realized – just as Renji swung his sword again.

Uryu could hear Orihime shouting "Santen Kess-!" not too far away, but it was already too late. The attack hit, and Uryu's right side exploded in pain. Screaming in agony, Uryu attempted doing a _hirenkyaku_, but only managed a jump which brought him a few feet away from Renji, where he almost collapsed upon landing. Gritting his teeth, Uryu held his side, where he could feel warm blood dyeing his white clothes red. "Ishida-kun!"

"Now there we go." Renji sneered, gloating at the sight of the injured Uryu. "You've been making this harder than it should be, Quincy-shit, but with an injury like that, it will be over for ya soon enough."

Uryu wanted to give the shinigami an angry reply, just something bravely defying, but he didn't manage to get out a single word – the pain was simply too great. He could only glare as Renji slowly walked over to him...

And then there was Orihime standing in front of him. "Don't you think you're forgetting something? This is isn't over yet!" She yelled, giving Renji an impressively angry look.

"Well, ya got guts, at least." Renji said, almost snarling as he raised his sword. Orihime decided to take the initiative- quickly, she raised her hand.

"Tsubaki!" She cried, and the sprite charged forward. Renji raised his sword, preparing to hit the little projectile mid-air-

"Santen kesshun!"

And right in the way of his sword, the orange shield formed. Renji slammed his zanpakutou right into it, and having not expected that kind of resistance, he stuttered back, almost unbalancing himself.

"Now!" Orihime cheered, and Tsubaki went around, quick as lightning, slamming Renji in the face.

Renji spat, holding out his sword. "Tricky little…"

"Tricky indeed." Uryu said calmly, standing up. Renji turned toward him, and around Uryu was that orange bubble, mending his wounds, even the tear in his suit. "She was right- you underestimate us at your own peril." Holding his bow arm up, he let the bow form, curiously observing his wound. "Inoue-san, I don't know what you're doing- but keep doing it."

"Che!" Renji spat. Swinging his sword, he let it fly, towards Uryu. Uryu flashed back elegantly. This new thing, this… bubble around him was taking away his pain, and he could feel his wound mending. More importantly, he felt the reiatsu around him like never before. For an instant, he felt like Renji's movements had slowed down- but that was not it. Whatever this bubble was doing, it was making him a little faster, a little stronger- no, it was changing the way he could control his environment, and himself.

Quickly, Renji flashed forward after him, the whip sword following him. He was guiding it with lethal precision; it surged forward and almost cut him- a good hit would probably kill him.  
But he wouldn't be hit.

"Shakkaho!" Renji cried, and again the kido was sent flying his way. He skipped out of the way, up on a roof- but there was the whip sword, and he realized that the kido had only been to make him move. He couldn't dodge, not enough time-

But he didn't have to.

"Santen kesshun!"

The shield took the blow for him, and he sped back, to Orihime's side, letting arrow after arrow fly Renji's way as he jumped. Some hit; Renji didn't seem to care, pursuing him furiously.

As he landed, he jumped back a bit. Renji sped past him, ignoring Orihime, trying to hit Uryu-

"Tsubaki!"

"Annoying rat!" Renji cried, as the little sprite hit him in the back. Uryu narrowed his eyes, strung an arrow, allowed himself half a second to aim, and let fly. The arrow hit Renji's leg, penetrating deep.

"Son of a bitch, that actually HURT!" Renji snarled, although he gave no impression that it had, charging forwards again. Uryu flashed away again, trying to dodge- but not this time. The shinigami was faster, and had more experience with fast movement than he- in a quick dash to the right, he caught up with Uryu, grabbing him by the sleeve, tight.

"Not so special when you stay still, are you?" Renji said, pulling him in close, readying his sword. Uryu steeled himself, bringing up his bow arm. Renji's sword was huge; this close up it would be inconvenient, maybe… he struggled, trying to get free.

And then suddenly, and arm had locked around Renji's throat from behind. Orihime had grappled him, and kicked him in the knee joint. Letting out an annoyed gurgle, Renji sunk to one knee.

He grabbed Orihime by the arm, tossing her- but Uryu was free, and Orihime had bought him the time he needed. Gathering energy from all around him, he strung his bow, and let fly.

Three arrows hit Renji square in the chest, and the shinigami spat blood. He showed no sign that he was about to fall, though- and now, he aimed his sword towards Orihime. She was just getting back up, she couldn't get that shield up in time-

And before he could even think, Uryu had moved. The sword chain hit him straight across the chest, two of its spiked segments cutting deep into chest and shoulder. Refusing to let it go unanswered, he fired again, one handed, hitting true, before sinking to his knees.

"Fucker." Renji gasped, blood pouring from all over his chest. He tugged, and the sword came loose from Uryu's body, ripping blood and flesh even more. He felt faint; this could be fatal. "You're good at hittin', but you can't take it- can ya?" He grunted, holding the sword over his shoulder. "Well, yer fucked now-"

"Tsubaki!"

And again, the sprite hit, right in Renji's face. The bloodied fukutaicho staggered back, swearing angrily.

"Ishida-kun, hold on." Orihime said gently. The bubble glimmered around him, already repairing his gruesome injuries. "I'll take care of him until you're healed up."

"What?!" Uryu cried. Or tried, at least- the blood loss was getting to him. "No, he's way too-"

"You did a good job, Ishida-kun." Orihime said, smiling. "He's almost down. I'll do the rest."

"Ya gotta be fuckin' _kiddin_ me." Renji said, his sword pointed at the ground, almost like a crutch. "I toldja, no mercy for women- and yer easily the weaker one here."

"That's fine." Orihime said, stepping up with a look of determination on her face. "Tatsuki-chan told me I shouldn't expect people to treat me differently because I am a girl, anyway." She stepped forward.

"Fuck, yer really serious, ain't you?" Renji said, holding up his sword. "All right, sure- I'll cut you down." He stepped forward, not without effort- a shinigami had his limits too, apparently- swinging his sword in a wide arc, hard and fast.

"Santen Kesshun." Orihime said calmly, and the blade connected with the orange shield. What came next would continue to baffle Uryu for years.

Stepping forward quickly, Orihime grabbed Renji by the wrist, by the same hand that held his sword, and slammed a fist into his gut- it had to be right into one of his wounds, because Renji let out a pained grunt, almost staggering. Orihime didn't rest for a moment, slamming a palm upwards, right onto his nose, and there was a nauseating crunch as the cartilage broke, his nose twisting. Quickly, Orihime slammed an elbow in his throat, and Renji let out a wheezing sound. He tried to reach for her with his free hand, to grab her, but she parried it with one arm, letting out a series of punches with the other. Renji cried out in pain and anger, and slammed his head down on hers. She staggered back, but didn't let go of his arm, not losing her footing-  
And then she kicked, kicked forward hard, right in between Renji's legs, and the mighty shinigami let out a high pitched squeal as he sunk to his knees. Uryu flinched; it seemed their physiology had at least some basic similarities to that of a human.

Orihime didn't stop, grabbing Renji by the hair, pulling him down to the ground. Quickly, she twisted an arm around his back, straddling his back.

"Please give up, shinigami-san." Orihime said gently. "I really don't like having to do these things."

Renji only groaned in response.

"Ishida-kun, are you feeling better?" Orihime called cheerfully. Uryu managed to get past his astonishment, and managed,

"I- er, yes. Better." While he was still in pain, his wounds had closed by now, which, in the end, was the only thing that really mattered.

"Balls..." Renji groaned from where he lay on the ground. "Fucking shitcunt dick urrrggghhhh…"

Uryu got up. "Don't try anything. Even if you shake Inoue-san off, I'll be able to shoot you before you do anything."

Renji groaned in response.

Uryu took aim, and shot him once.

"Ishida-kun, he's defenseless!" Orihime cried.

"I only knocked him out." Uryu said, breathing heavily. "Isn't that what you wanted, anyway?"

"…I suppose." Orihime said, getting off Renji. "I guess we need to get moving again- do you need more time?"

"I'll be fine." He shook his head, still trying to wrap his mind around the image of sweet, innocent Orihime, fighting like she had. "That… how did you…"

"You mean that?" Orihime said, gesturing dramatically with her hands. "Tatsuki-chan taught me karate, you know. I really thought he was going to beat me easily all along, though. It was lucky he was hurt so bad. Or not lucky- I still feel bad I had to hurt him at all."

Yes, it was true… Arisawa Tatsuki had finished second in the nationals for karate in her age group- Orihime would have had a good teacher. He still couldn't quite believe she could use it like that, though- whenever he thought that the surprises with this girl were over, she managed to pull something new.

"Well, in any case, it did come in quite handy..." Uryu noted, nodding towards Renji, who from the looks of it wouldn't be getting back up anytime soon. "So I suppose we'll tie him up and heal him, too?"

"Of course! Why should he be any different from this other guy?" Orihime said determinately, making it quite clear that there would be no arguing about this subject.

Uryu just remained silent. He could think of several reasons as to why letting Renji go would be a bad idea... the fact that he was a vice-captain who knew perfectly well who and what he was being just one of them. If they let Renji live, their cover as well as Ichigo's and Tatsuki's was just about entirely blown, since he would have absolutely no problem with figuring out whom one of the other two ryoka was. But at the same time, Uryu just couldn't bring himself to disagree with Orihime now.

And fortunately, there was no need for it, too.

"Ah, here you two are!" A very familiar, low voice came from behind – Uryu didn't even need to turn around to recognize it as being that of Yoruichi in her cat form. "And it seems like I missed all the fun, too... just why must my timing be so terrible?"

"Where have you been?" Uryu asked, turning around to glare at Yoruichi. "We ran first into a third-seat, then into a vice-captain, and only after we defeat both of them, you think you decide to show up?"

Yoruichi rolled her eyes. "Well, I've been mostly trying to get Ichigo and Tatsuki patched up after their fight against these Squad Eleven guys, but if you really don't like that, I suppose I will be taking notes, and not help them in the future. It'll probably get them caught within the next couple of hours, but fine."

Orihime gaped. "They have been in a fight? What happened? Are they all right?"

"Yeah, they're fine. I thankfully noticed them fighting soon enough, 'arranged' them some medical treatment, and got them to a safe place before they passed out." Yoruichi explained quickly, leaving Uryu to wonder if Ichigo and Tatsuki would consider themselves to be doing fine, too. "What about you, though? Who's this guy you've been fighting?"

"That's the vice-captain of Squad Six, one of the two shinigami that had come to the world of the living to retrieve Rukia from the world of the living... uh, I think his name was something like Whatshisface Renji." Uryu was certain that at one point, Renji might have given his full name, but couldn't recall it right now – battles could be very distracting.

Yoruichi meanwhile had walked up to the unconscious Renji, and started to inspect him by walking all around him. "Hm, Abarai Renji, perhaps? Not bad- the two of you exceed my expectations. Unless I am mistaken, he is actually a childhood friend of Rukia's... her surviving should be in his interest, too. He should technically have the same goal as us."

Uryu wanted to make a remark about how allies, even if they are only "technical", don't tend to beat each other within an inch of their life, but Orihime spoke up before he could say anything – which was probably for the better. "Yeah, he really did say something about wanting to help Kuchiki-san... but could you please move aside, Yoruichi-san? I want to heal him before we get going again."

"Heal him?" Yoruichi asked, sounding confused. "Why? I mean, I can understand why you would want to do that, but has none of you realized that we're running out of time here?"

"What do you mean by that?" Uryu asked, alarmed.

"Seems like this fight really has dulled your senses... well, simply put: You just fought and beat a _fukutaicho_. The reiatsu released would have been sensed by all shinigami within five miles. There is a patrol of shinigami approaching this location. They will probably be here in another minute or so, so we'll need to get out of here, and _fast_."

Uryu didn't even bother to ask why Yoruichi was telling them this only now. Without as much of a second thought, he grabbed Orihime's hand and started running as fast as he could, away from the reiatsus which by now, he could sense, too.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"A- Aizen-taichou, please come quickly! This is terrible!"

Aizen looked up. The captain of Squad Five had been busy doing this day's paperwork, a task which, due to the ryoka in the seireitei, was taking far longer than it usually did. More than once during the past few hours, he had considered just ignoring his work, given his... plans for the next day, but had each time decided against it. Doing anything that might even be slightly suspicious would be an unnecessary risk.

The person that had interrupted him was his vice-captain, Hinamori Momo, a young- by shinigami standards- black-haired girl, who was currently standing in the opened door. While normally upbeat and easy-going in her attitude, right now, the girl seemed to be visibly disturbed and upset – enough so in fact to awaken Aizen's curiosity.

"Please calm down and come in, Hinamori-kun. What is the matter?"

"Oh! I'm sorry, Aizen-taichou!" Momo hastily apologized, seemingly just now having realized that she was still standing in the open door. Quickly closing the door behind her, she took a bow. "It is about the vice-captain of Squad Six, Abarai Renji, taichou. One of our patrols just returned to our barracks, and they brought him with them. It seems like he came across the ryoka, and… he actually lost to them in a battle. He is unconscious, and..." She paused for a moment, swallowing as if the memory was unpleasant "...seriously injured."

Aizen raised his eyebrows in surprise. This _was_ rather peculiar... as far as he knew, Urahara's underlings were last seen heading into the general direction of the Eleventh Squad's barracks, which were several miles away from those of the Fifth Squad. Abarai fighting the ryoka here seemed less than likely – unless Urahara had more than just those two shinigami send to counteract his plans...

Aizen stood up. This was too interesting to wait. Abarai was a pretty competent fighter, and if Urahara had minions who could take him out, it would be worth collecting whatever data he could. "Take me to Abarai-fukutaichou, Hinamori-kun. I want to see him for myself."

"Yes, taichou." Momo said, bowing again, before leading him out of the room. After a few minutes of walking, they reached their destination: The entrance to a nearby barracks, where Abarai was being kept on a stretcher.

Just as Momo had said, the vice-captain was in a very bad shape. He had been stripped of most of his clothes, and most of his body was covered in hastily applied bandages. It was easy to tell that he was bleeding from multiple spots from all over his body, and that several of his bones were broken. If she had seen how Abarai looked before the bandages were applied, there was little surprise as to why she had been upset.

What did strike Aizen however more than anything else, though, was the exact nature of Abarai's injuries- not a single one of them looked like it was caused by a zanpakutou, be it in its unreleased state or even a shikai. It was of course possible that his injuries could have been inflicted by some unknown zanpakutou ability, but something felt… off.

"Hinamori-kun, were there any reports of other attacks like these?"

"Uh…" Momo said, thinking. "I think I heard that the third seat of seventh division was found knocked out earlier. He was completely unharmed though, so it might just be nothing."

"Thank you, Hinamori-kun. Please head back to the division for now."

"Yes, taichou!" she said enthusiastically, hurrying back.

Aizen's brows formed a frown- not of concern, but of curiosity. Quickly, he reached into his coat, taking out a small phial. Sensing that nobody was around, he scraped some of Renji's blood into the phial, and then put a cork on it. There was a fact about reiatsu, often overlooked- it was impossible for two reiatsu sources to clash without leaving an imprint on one another. For a scientist, DNA from somebody who just fought a major battle was a vast bank of information- it would contain traces of all the attacks his opponents had hit him with.  
And while he wasn't a scientist per se, he did have more than enough training. Leisurely, he walked towards the scene of the battle- he wouldn't need directions, nor would most officers; the swelling reiatsu, still settling after the violent clash, was indication enough for anyone with any sensory talent.

A couple of hours later, Aizen arrived back at his division. At his office, Momo was waiting- where else would the pitiful little thing be?- her face lighting up as he walked in.

"Welcome back, Aizen-taichou!" She said, bowing.

"There is no need to be so formal, Hinamori-kun." He said, putting on a reassuring smile. "I have been conducting a small investigation- I don't mean to steal the job of second division, but it can't hurt. After all, the Gotei's safety is at stake."

Inwardly, he was mildly amused at how perfect the excuse was. He had all the validity in the world behind him, collecting this data- and nobody had a clue.

"I see, taichou." His fukutaichou was beaming with admiration, as she usually would. It was somehow amusing to think of how easy it had been to make her devoted to him, such as she was. He knew he possessed the tools and talents for brainwashing if he so pleased- which, along the line, had sometimes been necessary- but this easily influenced little girl had only needed a gentle nudge to consider him the perfect hero.

"I will be working now." He said, knowing it was all he needed to make sure he would be left alone. Like a well-trained pet, Momo went to work herself, quietly, on whatever paperwork needed doing. In that simple regard, he might miss her even a little after he was done with his plans for tonight.

There was still time, though, for a recreational analysis of data, one that held just a little bit of significance- namely, strange reiatsu. He had taken samples from the scene of battle, and he had taken a blood sample from the third seat, Hasegawa- being still unconscious, the man hadn't noticed, nor had anybody else- and now all that remained was to analyze the data. Taking up what tools he needed- microscope, scientific data on reiatsu, pen and paper- he got to work.  
It was fascinating- before long, he had identified that it was indeed two distinct reiatsus, neither one being close at all to the structure of a shinigami's DNA. One was, fascinatingly enough, a… Quincy, that almost extinct faction of humans… and the other was completely unique. He wished he had another month to study this, to conduct tests- but knowing that Urahara employed a Quincy and a human with extraordinary reiatsu manipulation powers was enough.

"This is quite odd..." He said out loud, speaking just barely loud enough for Momo to assume that he was talking to himself.

"What is odd, Aizen-taichou?" The girl asked, as if on cue.

Aizen smiled inwardly. This was just too easy. "Oh, sorry, Hinamori-kun. I have been just thinking aloud." He said apologetically, as if he had said something that she shouldn't have heard. "But you see, I have been analyzing Abarai-kun's injuries, since they somehow seemed odd to me... and unless I am completely mistaken by my results, the young man was attacked by a Quincy."

Momo let out a gasp. "A Quincy? In the seireitei? I thought the ryoka were shinigami? And how could a Quincy even defeat a vice-captain like Renji?"

"Quincies are experts when it comes to manipulating reiatsu. If he was facing a Quincy who is sufficiently skilled at this manipulation, it is not too surprising that he lost. I think the only thing that saved Abarai's life was the approach of our patrol – if not for that, this Quincy probably would have killed him." Aizen explained calmly. While only a small detail, passing on the information of a strong Quincy being in the seireitei to Momo could certainly help his plans.

"Uwaah... a Quincy strong enough to defeat a vice-captain? That's a scary thought. He is probably allied with these rogue shinigami, too... but what could they possibly want here in the seireitei? And why would they split up?"

Aizen smiled. Naive as she was, Momo still was competent enough to be a vice-captain... of which he was reminded quite frequently. "I do not know, Hinamori-kun. We can only hope that the onmitsukidou catches these ryoka before there are any more injured people. With the level of strength that this Quincy has, he might even be a potential threat to a captain... ah, but I think I am worrying too much. This crisis should be resolved soon enough."

Though Momo said nothing in response, Aizen could easily see that his words were making her worry a great deal – just as he had planned. Silently, Aizen went back to his work.

After a few hours more, he looked up again- it was already late night. And since there had been no message about ryoka being captured, it meant they were still at large- Tosen and Gin were no doubt following his orders to the letter.  
Turning away from his research, he looked to Momo. Looking at her, having fallen asleep on his couch doing paperwork, he felt something- something he might almost describe as a passing sense of affection. It was only passing, though, and he allowed himself a smirk- the chaos he would sow with the letter he had left her would be quite amusing. He only wished he could be there to see it.

A younger Aizen Sousuke would have frowned, calling it sadistic. The present Aizen Sousuke only smiled, and disappeared into the night.

* * *

oOo

* * *

The first thing Momo noticed when she woke up was that she had, in fact, fallen asleep while in a very uncomfortable position – she could easily imagine dozens of ways to fall asleep that were more comfortable than falling asleep with her face on a desk. Only after continuing to sit like she had been in her sleep for a few more minutes, the memory of what exactly she had been doing yesterday came to her.

She had seen Abarai Renji being brought to the Fifth Squad's barracks, with all of those horrible injuries... she had told her captain, Aizen, about it, and had shown him the injured Renji... she stayed at his office to do paperwork-  
And fell asleep during that.

Instantly, Momo was entirely awake, and jerked up. "I'm sorry, Aizen-taichou! I didn't mean to-" She began to apologize... only to notice that aside from her there was nobody in the room.

Confused, Momo looked around. According to the clock on the wall, it was already past nine in the morning – a time at which Aizen usually was already long since at work. Looking around, she could see nothing that could hint at his whereabouts: His desk was orderly, looking like it had not been touched yet this day, and everything else seemed perfectly normal.

With growing confusion, Momo headed out of his office. For her captain to not be at work at this time, something important must have happened, and that would not necessarily be something good. Against her will, Aizen's words from last night crept into her mind... a strong Quincy, possibly even a threat for a captain...

Momo shook her head. No, she shouldn't be thinking something like that. Her captain was most likely just late for work – after all, even a man like him could oversleep, right? Maybe one of the other members of the Squad had seen him... it would be best if she went out to look for some of her subordinates.

With an increasing hurry, she walked out of the building, towards the nearest other building of the division, her eyes on the ground. Even though she was trying to best to not remember them, she kept thinking of Aizen's words. Each time her mind wandered back to them, she walked faster to distract her, until in the end, she was running. It was silly, she thought, getting all worked up over some words and Aizen being too late, when everything was probably fine...

She had almost reached the building, when she noticed something lying on the ground. Slowing down, she carefully approached the object, until she could finally identify it as a pair of glasses – a pair of glasses which seemed awfully familiar...

Momo picked up the glasses. There was no mistaking it: They belonged to her captain, Aizen Sosuke.

And there was blood on them.

Her eyes slowly growing wide, Momo raised her head – and screamed at the sight of what was there on the wall of the building.

* * *

Matsumoto Rangiku was just out for a walk, having only recently woken up- last night's drinking had been, if not heavy, then at least of medium weight, and it had had an impact on when she had found herself able to get out of bed. Her captain would be less than pleased with her, but then again, the guy always found _something_ to fuss about-

And then she heard it. A long, shrill scream, like distilled despair sailing through the air. And it kept going, going, renewing as if its owner intended to never stop. Rangiku, hurrying towards the sound, felt oddly distraught- there was something heartrending about the pain, like somebody who had lost everything-

And then she stopped, as she turned a corner and saw it.

She gaped. She had wanted to say something like "Oh, shit!", but- this, this was too baffling. Aizen Sousuke, pinned to a wall, blood decorating the entire wall around him, and before him, sunk to her knees, screaming, Hinamori Momo.  
Again, she gaped, and then, deciding that this was no time to do a goldfish impression, she hurried up to Momo. Quickly, she pulled her up, hugging her tight, averting her eyes.

"Don't look!" She said, looking around desperately. This was a hell of a mess- she needed to alert somebody. Everybody. If Momo's screaming hadn't already.

Momo was in hysterics, her body trembling. She had stopped screaming, instead breathing rapidly, her eyes looking as if though she was somewhere else entirely- which she probably was. The poor girl worshipped her captain- had worshipped, from the looks of it… oh, bloody hell, a captain? _Dead_? How was it even possible?

She could feel other reiatsus coming her way- thank goodness. Down the street, she could see Kira Izuru and Hisagi Shuhei, the fukutaicho of third and ninth division respectively, jogging towards her.

"Matsumoto-san!" Hisagi exclaimed. "We heard screaming and- holy shit!"

Well, at least somebody could find the appropriate words.

"What happened here, Rangiku-san?" Kira asked, disbelief written on his face.

"I found her here, screaming." Rangiku said, holding on tightly to Momo, who was still hysteric. "Hisagi, I need you to go tell everyone- anyone you can find, right now."

"Yeah, got it." Hisagi nodded. He looked a little shaken- not that she could blame him; she felt shaken herself. "I'll get the word out, sure."

Quickly, he bolted away, using _shunpo_.

"Izuru, I need you to help me get Momo away from here."

"No!" Momo cried. "No, no, he needs us-"

"My, my." She'd recognize that leisurely, draggy voice from anywhere- Ichimaru Gin, her childhood friend, and captain of division three. "Lookie here- I heard a big commotion, and I guess it warn't for no reason." He inspected the scene, sounding mostly curious. "Stickered like a pig, I see- nasty way to go. Probably had it comin', though... goin' out for a walk at night when there's ryoka runnin' about, that's just askin' to get killed."

Rangiku stared at Gin silently. She always knew that he hardly had the attitude to make friends, but she wouldn't have expected him to show nothing but apathy and a slight curiosity in regards to the death of a fellow captain.

"How..." Momo asked quietly, still in Rangiku's embrace "...how can you know that he was out for a walk?" Gin averted his gaze from Aizen's corpse and looked straight at Momo, still bearing that constant, slightly bemused grin on his face. "...how can you talk like that about the death of another captain?" She pushed Rangiku aside and stood up, tears still rolling down her face. "HOW CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HIM LIKE THAT?!"

Before Rangiku could even do as much as trying to hold her back, Momo had already drawn her zanpakutou, and started to charge at Gin, blade aimed at his neck. Gin meanwhile just stood there, watching Momo come closer and closer-

-and then there was Kira, blocking Momo's blade before it could hit Gin. "What do you think you're doing, Hinamori-kun?!"

"It's him! It must've been him!" Momo wailed, trying to push Kira's blade aside. "How else would he know that Aizen-taichou has been out for a walk?! WHY ELSE WOULD HE TALK ABOUT HIM LIKE THAT?!"

"You're being irrational! No matter your reasoning, I cannot allow you to harm my captain!" Kira shouted, as Gin quietly chuckled, and turned around to walk away.

Momo only gave Kira a mad glare. Then- "Snape, Tobiume!"*****

Instantly, her blade changed shape, straightening out, with two prongs growing out of its side. The moment the transformation finished, a bright red fire began to cover the blade, growing quickly bigger and bigger until it caused an explosion.

Only narrowly, Kira avoided the attack, having jumped back at the right time. "Releasing your zanpakutou in this situation... you leave me no choice but to consider you an enemy, Hinamori-fukutaichou! Raise your head, Wabisuke!"

Just like Momo's blade before it, Kira's sword changed shape, with its blade straightening out, with the very tip of it made two ninety degree turns, given the entire sword a look reminiscent of a hook. Without saying another word, Kira began to charge at Momo, who in turn got ready to make her next attack-  
But neither attack hit. Just before the two vice-captains reached each other, a white-haired man wearing the black robes of a shinigami and something similar to a captain's white haori jumped between the two, knocking both blades aside with a quick movement of his own sword.

"Sasakibe-fukutaicho!" Rangiku exclaimed, only now recognizing the man as the vice-captain of Squad One. With the unexpected fight going on in front of her, Rangiku had not been able to sense the approach of his reiatsu – and from the looks of it, neither did Momo and Kira.

"Matsumoto-fukutaichou, restrain Hinamori-fukutaichou. Kira-fukutaichou, step back at once." Sasakibe said in a calm but commanding tone, still keeping his sword in his hand. He then took a quick glance at Aizen's corps on the wall, and added "And somebody explain to me what is going here."

"Hinamori-fukutaichou first found Aizen-taichou... like this. Me, Kira-fukutaichou, Hisagi-fukutaichou and Ichimaru-taichou all came here when we heard her scream. Hisagi has already left to spread the word of what has happened." Rangiku began to explain, restraining Momo – who was doing her best to break free – like she was told to. "When Ichimaru-taichou... made some comments about what happened to Aizen-taichou, Hinamori became enraged, and started to attack him. Kira stepped in to protect his captain."

"What she said." Gin smirked, having come back to the scene when Sasakibe had shown up.

"And what exactly were your comments about this situation, Ichimaru-taichou?" Sasakibe inquired, giving Gin a calculating look.

Gin giggled. "Oh, nothin' special, really. Just made some lil' ol' guesses – like him having been out fer a walk when he was murdered. Might've mentioned that it was a stupid idea ter go out at night, with dem royka around and whatnot."

If Gin's explanation had somehow surprised or shocked Sasakibe, the man did not show it: He simply kept a straight face. "The soutaichou will hear about this incident... and I will not be leaving out what you had to say, Ichimaru-taichou."

Gin shrugged, smiling as creepily as ever. "Do as you please, Sasakibe-fukutiacho. I got business to take care of- can't stand here gawkin' at this spectacle all day." He turned around, walking away as leisurely as he had come.

Saskibe frowned, looking his way. Then, he turned to Kira and Hinamori. "I am placing the two of you under arrest. Raising your swords on one another, at a time like this? For shame!"

"But-" Kira objected.

"No buts. Report to the arrest of your respective divisions immediately- you will stay there until we decide you've learned your lessons. I do this on the authority of Yamamoto-soutaichou himself."

Rangiku sighed. This was beyond chaotic…

* * *

oOo

* * *

Unohana Retsu was carefully examining the body before her, thin plastic gloves on her hands, her fingers delicately wielding a scalpel. The death of a captain was serious indeed, and any data she could obtain might be invaluable.

So, she thought, as she peeled open Aizen's chest cavity, examining his wounds from the inside and outside, what could she deduce, on a purely preliminary basis?  
Well, the rate of reiatsu dispersing suggested a very recent death- he could not have died more than eight hours ago, probably less. Multiple lacerations- a total of seven deep punctures on his torso, four on his chest and three more running through his stomach. The reiatsu emanating from it suggested extremely strong force- which would go without saying; killing a captain would require nothing short of extraordinary force.

His sword was still sheathed when he was found, she knew, which would suggest he was killed quickly and without a struggle. The reiatsu samples from his wounds matched no shinigami registered in the Gotei Juusantai, meaning the perpetrator had to be a ryoka- or somebody using a very powerful killing method, unrelated to zanpakutou usage.

But this… was strange. Killing a captain took an almost titanic effort- certainly, shinigami had all the same bodily functions as a human being, but being made out of spirit particles as they were, it would take enormous amounts of damage to inflict a fatal injury. It was, in theory, possible for a shinigami to survive losing half a midsection, or even get cut in half, provided medical assistance was provided expertly- well, the latter case was probably impossible, but nevertheless, a shinigami's body was resilient to the extreme, and captains the most of all. Any damage would be proportional to the reiatsu behind the attack, compared to the reiatsu levels of its target.

Somebody like Aizen Sousuke could not have been killed by the sort of attack anybody below a captain's level could produce- or at least, it was so unlikely that the difference between impossible and unlikely was semantic. Even supposing that somebody of, for example, Kuchiki Byakuya's level, had inflicted these injuries, it should still not have killed him.  
The obvious source would be the ryoka, who had been here for two days already. The fact that they had not been found yet did suggest they were very skilled, but a being with the power of a captain could not remain undetected, however good his skill with suppressing reiatsu. Power could only be held back by so much, and reiatsu like her own, or Aizen's, could be felt from miles away- it was like a radiant beacon of pure, raw power to anyone who cared to sense.

Could the ryoka really have that sort of skill?  
Obviously, they could. It wouldn't be the first time something seemingly impossible had been made possible, because of factors unknown to her. But was it likely? No.  
Just reasoning logically, she couldn't see how Aizen was dead. But here he was, lying on her table, stiff and pale. She inspected his face solely, sensing his fading reiatsu. It was undeniably him, to the last possible spiritual sequence that made up his decaying body.

Quietly, she shook her head. This was a mess- and it was her job to find out how he had died. Well, there was no point in running herself into a wall. He was undoubtedly dead- this only meant there were facts she had not yet found, an explanation unseen and waiting to be uncovered. Slowly, she resumed her work, opening his ribcage. Everyone was doing their part out there, investigating. She would do hers.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Ichigo and Tatsuki were quietly walking down a back alley, guided by the timid Hanataro. As soon as they had healed, they had moved on, as per Yoruichi's instructions. Yoruichi herself was mysteriously absent, having left long before the two of them had finished resting up.

"Where is she?" Tatsuki asked.

"No point in wondering." Ichigo remarked, shrugging as he walked down the street. "We managed without her before, and we'll manage without her now."

"Barely." Tatsuki said, grumbling.

"Don't be so sour. We got a guide this time, at least. No need to be impatient."

Tatsuki gave Ichigo a glare. "You're one to talk about impatience- wasn't it you who wanted to get going again, without even being healed first?"

"That doesn't count. I was still worked up because of that fight." Ichigo said, waving his hand dismissively.

"Y'know, speaking of that fight..." Tatsuki began, sitting down right in front of Ichigo "why exactly did you save that super-technique of yours, this kizu-thing for last? If you had used this earlier, we might've won this thing with a lot less trouble."

"I barely know how to use it, and it takes so much energy that I'm useless after I fire it. It does a shit ton of damage, but if it doesn't hit, I'm too weak to fight. Besides, why didn't you use any of your special tricks? I know have some of those as well, like, this Raiendan."

"I _would_ have used them, if there had been the right opportunity. You just didn't leave me any." Tatsuki shot back. "And I _did_ use my Raiendan, but only after you collapsed."

"You know, I kind of feel like we have to work on this teamwork thing."

"Especially you." Tatsuki said. She probably meant it as a joke, but it wasn't really the right time for it- the two of them were tired, still recovering from their last fight.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Things could have gone from bad to worse, what with the two of them being tired, tense and teenaged, but luckily, their timid little guide actually decided to speak up.

"So, uh..." Hanataro's said hesitantly, having quietly listened to their exchange, focusing mostly on what routes had the least guards, "are you two, like, a couple, or...?"

This produced two very different reactions. Ichigo's face reddened, as he hastily threw out denials, so quick the words were jumbled. Tatsuki frowned, looking confused.

"Ew, no." She said. "That would be like dating my brother, or something. Or something. Definitely gross."

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean it like that! I apologize! You just- you sounded a lot like people who are used to arguing a lot with each other. And that's kind of the definition of a couple. …I'll stop talking now."

"I- it's alright, really." Ichigo mumbled awkwardly. "Let's just keep going, all right?"

Moving on in awkward silence, the trio kept walking.

* * *

"Fukutaicho-dono, targets identified."

Omaeda Marechiyo looked up, getting to his feet from the laid back position he had been in- stake-outs were tiresome; no sense not resting when you had subordinates already doing the watching. They were up on high, sitting on a rooftop, finding the best spots for sensing out-of-the-ordinary reiatsu.  
Grinning, he looked the officer in the eye. They sure were effective, their _onmitsukidou_ agents- they looked sneaky in their all black, faces covered uniforms, but they were good at their job.

"Good." He said, stretching himself. "They match the reiatsu signatures we've been looking for?"

The officer nodded. "Yes, fukutaicho-dono. These are the same signatures found at the site of the battle where Madarame-sanseki was defeated. Shall we move in?"

"Wait." Oomaeda ordered. "Our team has what, seven operatives?"

"Correct. Each one a fully trained agent."

"These guys beat a third seat- no, they beat Ikkaku, and you all know what a rowdy bastard he is in a fight."

"We have a battle plan, fukutaicho-dono." Was that irritation he sensed in his subordinate's voice?

"What, gang up on them from an ambush?"

"Essentially, yes. If we could administer tranquilizers, we could probably take them down with relatively few casualties."

Omaeda shrugged the suggestion off. "Nah, ain't gonna work. If they're this far in, they got to be hardcore masters of stealth- they're not going to fall for no ambush."

"Fukutaicho-dono-"

"I'm going to take 'em on."

"But-" the officer said, frustration leaking out from behind his mask.

"That's an order!" He said, emphasizing his words almost to the point of shout. "We follow them for a bit, and when we hit a good spot to attack, I'm going in." He grinned again, making a fist. "Don't you worry, though- your pals can back me up if things go badly."

"…yes, fukutaicho-dono." The officer said, bowing.

This was good. He'd finally have a chance to show his captain what he was made of, that he wasn't just a dandy who got his job because his dad played shogi with his captain's dad. This was his chance, and he wasn't going to waste it. Holding up a fist, he put on what he at least thought was a determined look. The ryoka would get what was coming to them, oh yes they would…

* * *

**Author's Notes:  
*** More attentive readers might have noticed this typo, since the correct release command for Momo's zanpakutou is actually "Snap", and not "Snape" - but when my co-writer GKR pointed it out to me, I felt that this was too amusing of a typo to pass up. So without further ado, I give you:

**A small typo during writing, taken to its logical conclusion.**

Momo only gave Kira a mad glare. Then- "Snape, Severus!"

Instantly, her blade changed shape, taking on the form of a roughly thirty year old man with black, greasy hair. The moment the transformation finished, a magic potion starting flowing from his mouth, forming a puddle on the floor until it caused an explosion.

Only narrowly, Kira avoided the attack, having Apparated out of the way at just the right time. "You dare summoning forth Severus Snape in this situation?! You leave me no choice but to consider you an enemy of my OTP, Hinamori-fukutaichou! Potter, James!"

Just like Momo's blade before it, Kira's sword changed shape, taking on the form of another roughly thirty year old man with black, messy hair. Without a fierce battlecry of "JAMESXLILY 4EVERRRR!" Kira began to charge at Momo, who in turn got ready to make her next attack, roaring "SEVERUSXLILY FOR LIIIFE!"-  
But neither attack hit. Just before the two shippers reached each other, an old man with a long, white beard appeared between them, tanking both hits while shouting at the top of his lungs.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU MOTHERFUKERS!" It was...Dumblydore!


	17. Psychopaths come in multiple flavours

**Author's Notes:  
**I can't think of anything to say here right now. I suppose I'll just add in some actual notes here once I can think of some. . .**  
**

* * *

_Uryu dug through the cupboard. When Urahara had told them that they would need to make their final preparations, Uryu realized that if he wanted to stand a chance against the shinigami of the Gotei Thirteen, he would need to take one of his grandfather's old Quincy artifacts with him – so here he was, in a dead man's room, searching for something that might be of use of him._

_His grandfather's room was full of these artifacts: Things created long ago by the Quincy to make them more efficient when fighting hollows... or shinigami. Uryu still remembered his grandfather's explanation on every object... most of them were inefficient or dangerous, and only few of them were actually practical enough to potentially give Uryu an advantage of battle. But these advantages were minor... if he wanted a significant boost, he'd have to use something quite of the ordinary._

_Only after several minutes of searching, he found something that came close to what he had envisioned... a lengthy, wooden box, containing a white glove. By wearing it, Uryu recalled, his ability to control reishi, spirit particles, would reach levels which he could not even imagine... and by taking it off, he would reach an even higher level of power – for a short time, at least. After a surge of great power, Uryu would lose his Quincy abilities altogether, with no method of recovering them, as far as he knew._

_Incredible power at a high price... Uryu held the box in his hands for a several minutes, thinking hardly about whether or not this would be worth it – but ultimately threw the box away into a corner, with the other artifacts that he would not be using. The price that he would have to pay for this power was too high. With a sigh, Uryu continued his search through the cupboard._

_Quickly, he found something else that took his interest: Another wooden box, much smaller than the previous one, and in the shape of a cube. Within it, lying on a bit of black cloth was what looked like a crimson gemstone, in just the right shape to fit in the palm of his hand. Uryu still remembered his grandfather's explanation on what the stone was, and what dangers its usage brought... like the glove, it would bring a great increase in his strength, easily enough to allow him to fight strong shinigami – but just like with the glove, the power would come at a great price._

_A price which Uryu was quite willing to pay, should the need to use the stone arise._

_He took the stone out of the box, put it in his pocket, and closed the cupboard. His preparations were made._

_Uryu was already about to turn around and leave the room, when a voice coming from the doorway stopped him dead in his tracks. "May I ask what exactly this is about?"_

_And there he was: His father, suddenly standing in the doorway, giving him the kind of disapproving look that he was so used to. Caught completely off-guard, Uryu stepped back, unsure of what to say, staring at his father with wide eyes._

_Of course, it just couldn't have gone smoothly... of course, his father had to show up, and demand the kind of conversation that Uryu had been avoiding. What should he tell him? That he would just go out for a few weeks to do some training? That he had made some friends, whom he would go a holiday with, and that he just wanted to make sure that hollows would not be a problem during that time? At least a dozen lies to tell his father flashed through his mind, one more detailed than the other – and yet, Uryu was certain that no matter which one he would tell his father, he would not believe him. So instead, Uryu decided to go with what was probably the worst thing to do at this point: Telling his father the truth._

_"I am going to the Soul Society." Uryu said, deciding to simply be blunt._

_For an instance, he thought he saw something different in his face, something besides the apathetic glare he was used to- something like shock, surprise, maybe even concern?_

_The look was over in an instant, though, Ryuken forming the same expression once again._

_"Well?" Uryu insisted. "Don't you have anything to say- some lecture about how interfering with the spiritual is pointless?"_

_Ryuken slowly shook his head. "This is Quincy business." He said, his voice carrying the verbal equivalent of a shrug._

_"And you make a point to stay out of that." Uryu almost sneered._

_Ryuken took a few steps forward. "You're almost grown up, Uryu. You're allowed to make your own decisions- you have always been better at that."_

_Better than who? Himself? Was- was he trying to say something?_

_"That's it?"_

_"That's it." Ryuken nodded. "If you want to throw your life away, it's your choice- but there's one thing I think your grandfather would have to say about that red stone."_

_"And what would that be?"_

_"Your grandfather- father- forged that stone to be a last resort. Power, when all options had run out. It was the result of some ancient, almost forgotten Quincy arts- and it didn't seem like he thought it was a good idea to even make it."_

_Uryu was mildly surprised, curious- his father almost never talked about Quincy history._

_"It is that dangerous?"_

_"It's dangerous- but that didn't concern him. He was confident in his control. What troubled him was that this horrid little thing was, to him, distilled evil." Ryuken took up a cigarette, lighting it. "I may be sounding a bit dramatic, but he thought of it as… highly unethical, just for existing."_

_"But he made it."_

_Ryuken nodded._

_"So what would grandfather have to say?"_

_Ryuken blew out some smoke. "I don't know. But if I had to guess, he would probably say something like 'Uryu, my boy, this stone'-" he took another puff on his cigarette, and there was a strange look in his eyes that Uryu couldn't remember he had ever seen before, "If you ever use this stone, you will have crossed a line. You will have gained power, but at the expense of others. It exists; it has already been made and can't be undone, but to use it is an act of desperation. It isn't something anybody should have to use.' That is something he might have said."_

_"You sound pretty elaborate for something he only might have said."_

_Ryuken shrugged. "It's what he told me. Now have fun storming the castle- if you're lucky, father won't be turning in his grave."_

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Y'know..." Ichigo said, breaking the silence that had been following them like a hungry and optimistic stray dog ever since they had left their corner, "in comparison to how this all went yesterday and the day before that, today is really easy so far."

"Yeah, now that you mention it... there really don't seem to be any other shinigami around here." Tatsuki agreed, turning around to Hanataro, who was quietly following them with a distance of a few feet, in the hope that keeping the attention of himself would also allow him to stay out of trouble. "You got any ideas why that is, Hamtaro?"

Hanataro frowned – or rather, drew down the corners of his mouth some more, as he had already been frowning the entire time, since it was the best thing that he could do to cope with the situation. "That might be because we're still in the general area of the Squad Eleven barracks. All the other Squads aren't exactly keen on venturing into these parts when that Squad is feeling violent... I think if anyone from a Squad that's not the Eleventh would attack us here, they'd protest and call it kill stealing."

"Haven't we gone past the divisions by now, though?" Ichigo asked. "I mean, their reputation can only reach so far, right?"

"…I guess you're right." Hanataro murmured.

"...That Squad is messed up." Tatsuki noted, after silently staring at Hanataro for a few more seconds, thinking that he had been joking. "I mean, I get that you're a military organization and all, but why would you let a bunch of psychopathic murderers like them walk around freely, and even work for you?"

"They're efficient. I think that's all that the bosses of the Central Forty-Six really seem to care about." Hanataro said bluntly, hoping that it would end the conversation. In a way, it seemed to work, too: Neither Ichigo nor Tatsuki said anything in response. At the same time however, Tatsuki also stopped dead in her tracks, and stared into Hanataro's general direction.

"I said something wrong, didn't I?" Hanataro asked, sighing and also stopping.

"Hey, Ichigo..." Tatsuki said, after silently staring in Hanataro's direction some more, ignoring his question. "Have you also been feeling that something like a faint reiatsu has been following us for a while now?"

Ichigo turned around, also staring in the same direction that Tatsuki was looking at (where a rather confused Hanataro was standing). "Well, now that you mention it... there was something, though I thought it was just my imagination."

Tatsuki nodded in agreement. "Yeah, same here. But you know, I kinda think that this fatass trying to hide behind that corner there is _not_ our imagination."

Only now, Hanataro turned around as well – just in time to see said "fatass", whom he instantly recognized to be the vice-captain of Squad Two, Omaeda Marechiyo, to jump out of his hiding spot behind the corner, shouting loudly as he did so. "Aha, just as planned! My strategy to unnerve you ryoka has worked perfectly!"

He was greeted with a flat, highly unimpressed stare from the two aforementioned ryoka, their faces expressing emotions in between mild surprise and disbelief.

"You know, Ichigo, we fought a pretty tough-looking third seat on our way here, didn't we?" Tatsuki said.

"We sure did." Ichigo said flatly.

"Almost died, didn't we?"

"Just about."

"And do you think this… walrus of a man will be even close to that?"

"You know, I have this feeling that he won't."

"Don't you ignore me, you shameless intruders!" Omaeda bellowed. "You have fallen right into my trap! I, Omaeda Marechiyo-sama, fukutaicho to the elite second division, specialized in stealth and assassination, will personally bring you before my captain-" His long, self-aggrandizing rant was interrupted by Tatsuki's fist, almost slamming into his face. He only narrowly blocked it, taking a step back to keep his footing.

Tatsuki stepped back. "Hey, Ichigo."

"Yeah?"

"Let me try this by myself for a bit."

"We don't have time to dawdle, you know."

"It won't take long."

"STOP IGNORING ME!" Omaeda roared, lashing out with a fist. Tatsuki calmly deflected the blow, grabbed him by the wrist, and lifted herself up, beautifully delivering a sideways kick into his face. Gracefully, she landed on her feet, lashing out with a series of punches and kicks. Omaeda was hardly outclassed- he blocked, counterattacked, and finally managed to slam a fist into her gut. Tatsuki let out a gurgle, sliding backwards.

"You need any help?"

Tatsuki shook her head. "It's like I thought- he's strong, kind of fast… but compared to that Ikkaku guy, he's nothing."

"How _dare_ you compare me with a simple commoner like that?" Omaeda snapped.

"That's funny, fatso," Ichigo said. "How about we tell him you said that about him?"

"No-no need for that!" Omaeda exclaimed. "He wouldn't believe your lies anyway!"

"Either you're the best actor the shinigami corps has, or you're really not that impressive, fatso." Tatsuki said flatly.

"I'm not fat! And that's Omaeda-sama to you, commoner!"

"Sorry, fatso-sama." Tatsuki grinned.

"You insolent little bugs- I'll show you!" Omaeda shouted, drawing his zanpakutou. "I'm not a _fukutaicho_ for nothing- _crush, Gegetsuburi!_"

The sword transformed, becoming a length of chain, ending in a very nasty-looking iron ball, with several large spikes jutting out of it.

"Take this!" Omaeda shouted, sending the ball and chain flying towards Tatsuki. Tatsuki simply sidestepped, letting the chain pass right by her.

"This is too easy." She said, grinning. Omaeda grinned back, pulling the chain inwards.

"Shit!" Ichigo shouted, hopping forward, knocking Tatsuki's feet out from under her. She fell flat on the floor- and instantly, the iron ball passed over her, where her head had been less than a second ago.

"I told you, you're getting too confident." Ichigo said, getting up and unsheathing his zanpakutou.

"Hey!" Tatsuki said, getting to her feet. "I…" She looked at Omaeda, now grinning maliciously. "I guess you're right."

"Oy, don't forget who you're fighting!" Omaeda shouted, sending the ball flying. The two of them jumped back, pulling out their swords.

"Destroy them, Zangetsu!" Ichigo cried, as his sword grew to a iron-slab oriented size.

"Strike, Raitora!" Tatsuki shouted, and around her hands, the brass knuckles formed. Immediately, their reiatsu surged.

Again, Omaeda lashed out, sending his chain flying. Ichigo raised his Zangetsu.

"Getsuga Tensho!" The blue arc of light shot out, slamming into the ball mid-air, both attacks cancelling each other out.

"What was that?" Omaeda grunted, raising a hand to his brow; there was some dust knocked up by the clash-

And there was Tatsuki, landing at his feet, punching upwards, her fist connecting solidly with his chin. Omaeda grunted, staggering backwards.

"Charge!" She cried, exhilarated. Not stopping there, she used shunpo, reappearing behind him. Omaeda swirled around to face her, lashing out with an arm- but Tatsuki caught it, dodged beneath it, and slammed a knee into his gut. Quickly, she slammed a fist into his face, hopping back before he could recover long enough to hit her.

Letting out an angry cry, Omaeda dragged at his chain- only to find that it was stuck, pinned to the ground in one of its links by Zangetsu. Ichigo almost grinned when he saw Omaeda's face.

Seeing an opening, with Omaeda distracted by Ichigo's move, Tatsuki let her reiatsu build up, and,

"_Raiendan!_" She shouted, slamming a roundhouse kick into Omaeda's side. The fukutaicho let out a sound as if all air had been knocked out of him, sinking down to one knee. Tatsuki followed up with a punch to his throat, and he fell over, gargling. Quickly, she put a foot on his chest, readying herself for another blow, and another, and another-

And then Ichigo took her by the hand, gently but firmly.

"That's enough. He's down for the count."

"But…" She stopped herself, fighting the urge to keep going, to just fight and fight, till there was nothing left of the enemy... "Uh, yeah. Thanks."

There was a moment of something like awkwardness, then Ichigo said,

"Well, that was easy."

"Too easy, I think." Tatsuki said, looking around. And no sooner had she said that before a troupe of what looked like genuine ninjas dropped down from the walls- five, six, seven of them, all carrying swords, and looking very much like Ichigo and Tatsuki would expect ninjas to look: Entirely black clothing, faces concealed in black masks, carrying sheathed swords with them, and most of all – looking very serious.

"Ah, crap…" Ichigo grunted. "Let me guess- you're the reason it was so quiet so far, right?"

"Astute." Said the ninja to the front, apparently the leader. He shot a quick glance at Omaeda, who seemed to be unconscious. "Our _fukutaicho_ may be an idiotic noble hell-bent on personal glory, but we do not have such simple-minded goals blinding our judgment. It's time to-"

And then he put a hand to the side of his head, and Ichigo noticed he was wearing a headset, or something like it. The imagery was bizarre to him. Ninjas with electronic equipment?

"…I see." The head ninja said. "Understood. Yes. Yes." Quickly, he waved with his fingers, and his fellow ninja stepped aside, standing to attention at the wall. "I've been given the order to let you continue, ryoka."

"Wait, just like that?" Tatsuki said, sounding confused.

"It's never that easy." Ichigo agreed.

"Rest assured, whatever comes next will be far worse than the seven of us." The ninja replied calmly. "For now, though, the road is clear."

With that, just as sudden as they had appeared, the ninjas jumped back onto the walls, and were out of sight before Ichigo or Tatsuki could even say anything. Within seconds, their reiatsus – which were barely noticeable to begin with – vanished entirely, leaving Ichigo, Tatsuki, Hanataro, and the quite ignored Omaeda on their own.

"...So what the hell was that all about?" Ichigo wondered aloud, scratching his head.

"Guess we'll find out soon enough..." Tatsuki mumbled, while Hanataro put his best efforts into being as unnoticeable as possible, figuring that whatever was coming towards them was more likely to notice him if he were to use this opportunity to run away.

And then they felt it.

A reiatsu approached them – one stronger than anything else that they had ever felt until that point. It was if they were slowly approaching a big fire: It started out as slightly irksome, but got more unpleasant the closer it got, until it was almost too much to bear. Before long, the crushing pressure of whom- or whatever was approaching them made it hard to even stand upright.

Hanataro, unable to bear that much, simply collapsed. Neither Ichigo nor Tatsuki noticed it, though: Both of them were already giving it their all to keep standing.

"What... is... that?!" Ichigo managed to get out, just as something like the sound of many small approaching bells could be heard. Tatsuki meanwhile only managed to get out a grunting noise, just as the source of it all came around the corner.

Running towards them was an enormous man, standing at least two meters tall. He had exactly the kind of face that you might expect from a violence-obsessed mercenary: Wild, long, stringy black hair which seemed to have the bells in it, an eye patch, and, more notably, something that looked like a captain's run-down haori. Both Ichigo and Tatsuki swallowed – from a guy like that they'd run away any day, absurdly powerful shinigami or not.

The man meanwhile, having noticed them standing there, slowed down to the point where he stopped running, and started simply walking towards them. As he got closer, Ichigo noticed that over there was a small, pink-haired girl hanging over the man's shoulder giving them a curious look – and seemingly not being in the slightest bothered by his crushing power.

"Let's see..." The man said, his voice is a low growl. "Tall, muscular, ginger guy and black-haired tomboy girl, that's what the description said, right Yachiru?"

The girl on his shoulder nodded. "That's right, Ken-chan! These must be them!"

"Keh." "Ken-chan" spat. "Don't look like much, do they? They just stand there and stare!"

"Who- who are you?" Tatsuki asked, having finally at least somewhat adjusted herself to the man's crushing power.

Raising his eyebrow, the man focused his look on Tatsuki, walking slowly closer to her. "Would ya look at that- ya can actually talk. Seems like I'll need to have a word with Ikkaku when I get back – not mentioning me, that punk. I am the captain of the Eleventh Squad, Zaraki Kenpachi." He pulled a wide, fiendish grin. "And I've come here to have some fun with you."

Tatsuki could feel cold sweat running down her face. In comparison to being near Gin, this was infinitely worse – and this guy hadn't even used his Shikai yet. If this man wanted them dead, they were just about done for... but then again, for most of the time of their fight, Ikkaku had kept underestimating them... if this guy was even slightly similar, they might have a chance to at least knock him out before he went all out. She exchanged a quick glance with Ichigo, who gave her a small nod, having most likely had the same thought.

"Fine then." Ichigo said, trying his best not to make his fear obvious. "We'll fight you, boss."

Kenpachi turned towards Ichigo, his grin growing wider. "Good... searching for you punks won't have been entirely pointless then. Yachiru, get that fatass and the wimp over there out of here. They'll just be in the way."

"Ehh?! But I wanna watch you fight, Ken-chan!" The little girl complained loudly.

"Do it quickly, then. Just get these two to the barracks, and then get back here."

Yachiru pouted. "But what if you're already done by then? I don't wanna miss everything!"

"I'll just take my time with this punks, then." Kenpachi said, scratching his head. "Just do it, or we'll never started."

Giving Kenpachi and unhappy glare, the girl jumped over to Hanataro and Omaeda - and, much to Tatsuki's and Ichigo's amazement, lifted them both, running off with them.

Ichigo swallowed, holding his sword up. There was a slight tremble in his arms- just what the hell kind of guy was this? This… was beyond anything he had ever expected to face. He knew they would be strong, but this giant man before him made him feel like he was standing at the edge of an abyss, staring down into maddening infinity.

Tatsuki, for her part, felt no better. The oppressive reiatsu bearing down on her made it hard to breathe, move, talk- it felt absurd that they should fight this, this… monster of a man.

"What's takin' ya so long?" Kenpachi grunted, casually scratching an ear with his finger. "Tell you what- I'll give ya a handicap, to make it fair." Slowly, he grabbed the rim of his uniform, and parted it to reveal a very muscular chest, covered in old scars.

"Wh-what?" Ichigo mumbled.

"I ain't got all day- come on and cut me. Ya get one free hit each."

Confused, Ichigo looked to Tatsuki. "What- what do we do?" He sounded almost panicked; this was unlike anything they'd faced before.

"Well, we can't really run- so we fight. Let's take his offer." Tatsuki said, swallowing her fear.

"Good girl!" Kenpachi said, grinning, and the two of them were eerily reminded of a shark. A shark that had just eaten two grizzly bears, and was looking for dessert.

"Shit…" Ichigo grumbled, raising his reiatsu as much as he could.

"They did tell us we could die." Tatsuki said, her teeth gritted. "I just… hoped we wouldn't." She said weakly.

"Let's go." Ichigo said, charging reiatsu into his sword. "I'll go high, you'll go low."

Clanking her brass knuckles together in acknowledgment, Tatsuki hopped forwards as Ichigo charged. Ichigo gritted his teeth so hard he felt they ought to break- he had to do some damage, do some damage here and now…

"Zangetsu, can you hear me?" He said, and time seemed to slow down a little. "I'm sorry if I end up getting us killed."

"_Do not let yourself falter._" Was the spirit's response. "_Believe that you can win, and believe in me. If you do that, whatever comes next is unimportant._"

And Ichigo sprung forward.

"This was a bad idea, wasn't it?" Tatsuki said to herself, and to Raitora.

"_Is that hesitation?_" Raitora said, sounding strict.

"No. I can't run or give up- it's do or die. But this is a bad situation."

"_Never turn your back on the enemy._" Raitora replied. It seemed it was as much as she wanted to share- and thus, Tatsuki sprang forward.

"GETSUGA TENSHO!"

"RAIENDAN!"

An observer would have been hard pressed to see what happened- two reiatsu clashing with a much greater one, dust rising…

And there was Kenpachi, standing up and still grinning, and the two teenagers fallen to the ground.

"Son of a _bitch_!" Ichigo swore, getting up to his feet, barely holding on to his sword. There was blood leaking from his hands.

"It felt like punching a cement wall." Tatsuki said, shaking her fist. "God damn…"

Kenpachi chuckled, rubbing his chest. "Not bad- I think you drew blood." And right they were- a small cut bled little droplets of blood where Ichigo had hit. "I guess that means you're good enough for some fun."

And then he raised his sword.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"Is there any new data on the whereabouts of the second ryoka group?"

"No, taichou. So far, our surveillance systems have not picked up anything that would suggest that they have entered the area of our squad."

"Keep your eyes open. I want these ryoka to be captured by our Squad before they fall into the hands of these cretins of the Second Squad. They will hardly be useful as test subjects once their captain is through with them..."

Kurotsuchi Mayuri, captain of Squad Twelve, grit his teeth. Ever since the news of what had happened to the vice-captain of Squad Six, Abarai Renji, had reached him, Mayuri had been redirecting his Squad's entire efforts from their usual research to trying to find the ryoka that had defeated Abarai.

Before the incident, the entire deal with ryoka having made their way into the Seireitei had barely interested Mayuri. After all, the focus of his Squad was research and development – why should he bother himself with an issue that was the Second division's responsibility to take care of? As a matter of fact, even more drastic recent events such as Abarai's defeat, and the unexpected death of his fellow captain Aizen Sosuke had under normal circumstances barely bothered Mayuri... if it weren't for the apparent identity of the ryoka that had defeated Abarai, and the possibility that they could be behind Aizen's death.

While the news of two ryoka shinigami in the Seireitei had barely been able to catch Mayuri's attention, the information of there being another ryoka group consisting of a Quincy and a human with powers was more than enough to get his interest. Being the head of research and development, it was his duty, among other things, to analyze the enemies of the Gotei, be they Hollows, Quincy, or another threat altogether... and an empowered human and a Quincy would be quite the prize indeed.

The Gotei had put on a formal rejection to his hunt for Quincies, in the decades past- a few of them had called the systematic hunting, capture and experimentation "unethical", whatever relevance _that_ had to science- but it had been approved by the central Forty-Six covertly, under the condition that his work be kept secret. He had collected a wealth of data from dozens and dozens of now dead Quincies, particularly from the last one- an old man, who Mayuri had captured after he had defended a small city in the world of the living against an unnaturally big hollow attack until his strength was drained.

And just as Mayuri had hoped, the old man had provided him with excellent data. Keeping him alive throughout the experiments that he had conducted on him back in Soul Society had been quite a hassle, and his mental state had been nothing short of an annoyance, but in the end, it still had been possible to let him live long enough for the research to be finished. The data had been gathered, an enemy of the Gotei had died, and Mayuri was quite satisfied with his work.

And now, not only another Quincy- there was always new data to process, new hypotheses to falsify or confirm- but a human with considerable power. While he had heard of "Fullbringers", living human beings with basic powers vaguely similar to that of a shinigami before, he had never actually managed to get his hands on a specimen to conduct experiments on... simply finding them was harder than finding Quincy had ever been. In fact, in all the years that he had worked in the Gotei, Mayuri had only heard once or twice of a group of "Fullbringers" being sighted in the world of the living. As far as he knew though, this group was being searched for by other Squads of the Gotei, making his actual chances of getting a specimen from this group almost non-existent. No, if he wanted to get a Fullbringer to do his experiments on, it would have to be this ryoka...

"Taichou!" The voice of his vice-captain and artificial daughter, Kurotsuchi Nemu, interrupted his thoughts.

"What is it?!" Mayuri snapped, not appreciating being interrupted in the slightest.

"Our sensors have picked up two reiatsus that have entered our area. Chances are high that they are those of the ryoka that have defeated Abarai Renji." Nemu answered stoically.

Mayuri let a smile cross his ghostly face. Time to get himself some new test subjects.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Momo was sitting in the arrest, her knees up against her chest, her head hung low. Her mind was empty, still processing the unthinkable- that Aizen Sousuke, the man she valued more than anything, was… gone.

"Are you all right?"

The door to her cell had opened, and in the opening stood Rangiku. She looked troubled- sympathetic, but uncertain.

"I guess that's a stupid question." She continued. "But… I have something for you." She reached into her sleeve, and produced a letter. "This was addressed to you, by Aizen-taicho. I really shouldn't- technically it counts as evidence… but you of all people deserve to know what he had to say to you."

Momo didn't respond.

"…I'll just leave it here." Rangiku said, walking forward, placing the letter on the floor, next to Momo, and then walked out. "You take care, all right?" She said, her face all concern. Then, she closed the door and walked out.

Instantly, Momo grabbed at the letter, ripping it open, her hands trembling with excitement. She almost dropped it, taking a second to steady her hands. This… this was Aizen-taichou's words to her, his final words- what he had to say to her, what he knew about his investigation, maybe even who had… killed him. She swallowed, and opened the letter.

_Dear Hinamori-kun- no, Momo-kun- I go tonight to face what may be my end, but I do so because it must be done. My investigation, which has uncovered corruption deep inside the Gotei Thirteen, has necessitated the deepest secrecy, but to you and you alone I can reveal all I know about this conspiracy, at the center of which not only the ryoka stand, but also the third seat of Squad Ten…_

Momo read the letter, clasping a hand over her mouth in shock as she did, trembling, emotions of all kinds flowing through her mind.

Then, after she had read the letter top to bottom three times- and a fourth, just to be sure- she stood up, and mumbled a simple incantation. Instantly, the wall behind her dissolved, and she hopped out into the night in the pursuit of justice.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Renji stared up to the ceiling above him. He had been brought to the barracks of Squad Four, where he was now lying on a bed in one of the Squad's multiple sickrooms. When he had woken up about an hour ago, he was being told that while his injuries were severe, he still would be able to get out in another day or two. While his initial reaction to this news had been not exactly positive, he was able to accept it rather quickly... just lying down for a bit, and thinking about things was probably good.

He still could hardly believe that he had actually lost the battle... him, a vice captain of the Gotei Thirteen, defeat by a Quincy and a -whatever the hell that girl was. He should be upset, should be ashamed, should swear revenge for this humiliation... but somehow, the only thing that Renji did feel was that he deserved it. That Quincy and that... girl had both been fighting to rescue Rukia from her execution. If anything, Renji should've joined them, helped them, or just let them pass – but instead he had attacked and almost killed them several times, and all that in the name of the very organization that was responsible for sentencing Rukia to death in the first place, as if he actually wanted to ensure that she would die.

Maybe this was also the reason why he had lost, he thought... maybe he just couldn't bring himself to stop the people who did what he wanted to do. Maybe he had held back without realizing it, given those two more than enough chances to defeat him... he just didn't know any more. How could he still lie around, and follow the Gotei's order, if they went against everything that meant something to him?

Renji sighed quietly. In any case, the outcome was the same: He had lost, and the Quincy and that girl had moved on... which was honestly for the better. If they got lucky, these two and that other ryoka group might have an actual chance to save Rukia... all he could do in the meantime was wait and hope that they made it to the Senzaikyu where Rukia was being held.

"_You know very well how high the chances are that they make it, Renji._" He heard the voice of his Zanpakutou, Zabimaru, in his head. "_The closer they get to the prison, the more likely they are to be found – not to mention them getting into the prison. It is only a matter of time before they are caught, and then there is nothing that will prevent Rukia's death._"

"Oh, shaddup." Renji murmured irritably. His Zanpakutou was right, he knew – but right now, he did not want to hear anything like this. Not with him having been in that fight earlier, not with Rukia's execution approaching slowly but steadily...

"_You know that there is something you can do about that._" Zabimaru continued, entirely ignoring Renji telling the spirit to shut up. "_It would be easy for you to do, if only you finally stopped hesitating..._"

"I can't do this!" Renji shot back. "It'd just go wrong, and in the end, I'd be up for execution, just like Rukia."

"_And yet, you'd never be able to forgive yourself you didn't do it. _I_ would never be able to forgive you._" Zabimaru remarked cryptically. Renji said nothing in response, waiting for the spirit to add anything to that, but nothing came. He was alone with his thoughts again.

Renji sighed again. Once again, his Zanpakutou was right... he'd never be able to stand sitting around here, hoping that maybe some kids who'd never stand a chance against a captain would free Rukia for him. He had known Rukia since they both had been children, living far out in a dangerous district of the Rukongai. Life in these parts had been like balancing on the edge of a knife. More than once, they had to bury their friends, other children that had become family to them... until only Rukia and Renji had remained. In a last attempt to get a chance of a better life, the two of them had decided to make their way to the Seireitei, and try to enroll into Shin'ō Academy, the place where souls with potential were trained to become shinigami. To their surprise, both of them were accepted – and thus they became shinigami.

For a while all seemed well: They both were trained at the academy (with varying success), made friends, moved up in the world... until one day, Rukia received a visit from the head of the Kuchiki clan, Kuchiki Byakuya. For whatever reason, the man had heard of Rukia, and taken an interest in her; he ended up adopting Rukia, making her nobility, and at the same time, making spending time with her more than just a little inconvenient. However, reaching the conclusion that in the end, this did allow Rukia to live a better life, Renji endured it, and joined Squad Six upon graduation – Kuchiki Byakuya's Squad. Doing so made it at least somewhat acceptable for him to spend time with Rukia again. All in all, joining the Gotei had made their lives a lot better...

...and now the Gotei wanted her dead.

Renji had never really thought that much about the laws and inner workings of the Gotei. Sure, he knew they existed, acted according to them, and made sure that they were kept up – but it never really mattered to him why they were made, or what purpose they served. He was always under the impression that the Central Forty-Six had very good reasons for making these laws (not that he'd ever understand them), but this... this was beyond insane. Whatever the reasoning of the Central Forty-Six was, he'd never be able to accept it.

Which meant that there was only one thing that he could do. Of course, doing it would be just about suicide... but that was still better than having to watch Rukia get executed.

He had made his mind up.

Slowly Renji got out of his bed and stood up – only to be greeted by an significant amount of pain surging through his entire body. That Quincy and that girl sure had been efficient in beating him up... he still almost collapsed from just standing up. Reaching his goal would be a chore like this – but he'd not turn back. Hobbling over to one of the room's corner, Renji took a crutch, and made his way out into the hall.

For whatever reason, the entire place seemed to be empty... as if something else had happened, which required the entire attention of Squad Four. Not that it mattered – in fact, this would only make things easier for him. The less people there were around, the less likely it would be for him to get caught out of bed. That in turn of course also meant that him having to face Unohana's wrath was less likely, but he'd rather not think about that to begin with.

Slowly but steadily, Renji made his way out of the Squad Four barracks, and towards the Senzaikyu, which was luckily enough rather close. Despite his current state, the guards let him in without much trouble; just insisting that he had permission from his Captain to enter the prison was already enough. Of course, if said captain were to somehow find out that Renji had done something like this, the situation would be more than just a little unfavourable for him – but at this point, that hardly mattered.

And then, only a few more minutes after he had entered the prison, he was finally there again: Rukia's cell. As he hobbled towards it, his friend noticed him before he stood in front of it.

"What happened to you?" Rukia asked, her tone a mix of melancholy and concern.

Renji however remained silent, and continued to make his way to the cell, until he was right in front of it. Letting go of his crutch, he sat down on the floor, leaning his back against the bars. "...There's ryoka in the seireitei." He then said, after another moment of silence. "Two groups of 'em: Some black-haired four-eyes Quincy, and a redhead girl... I fought them yesterday and lost."

He didn't even need to turn around to know that Rukia's eyes were growing wider. "Haven't actually seen the other group myself, but from what I hear, it consists of a black-haired tomboy, and some tall, muscular redheaded guy. They're here to save you."

Renji chuckled quietly. "It's really kinda stupid, isn't it? These guys are here to make sure you live, and what do I do? Fight them, and try to stop them." He turned around, looking right into Rukia's shock stunned face. "Well, no more. I've had enough of being stupid. You know what I'm gonna do, Rukia? As soon as I'm back at full health, I'll come to get you out of here, even if I have to fight every last stinkin' captain!"

* * *

oOo

* * *

It was like living a nightmare. The despair, the hopelessness, the overwhelming force, and the madman laughing like a daemon; it was in so bad a way that Ichigo expected, no, _hoped_ that any moment now he'd wake up, Tatsuki chiding him for oversleeping…

But Tatsuki was up against a wall, barely standing and bleeding profusely from several cuts- and the bastard hadn't even been trying when he landed those hits. They were, simply put, outmatched.

"Good- but this ain't the time to be resting!" Kenpachi cheered happily, stabbing forward with his sword, aiming for Tatsuki. Ichigo surged forward, just barely managing to parry the strike; it felt like a truck hitting him.

"Oh no you don't!" He snarled defiantly, pushing back, just barely pushing back against the man's brute strength.

"Good lad." Kenpachi said, pushing back. His reiatsu kept rising, as if reflecting his mood- or an erection; it might as well be with this kind of enthusiasm.

And suddenly Tatsuki had flashed behind him, electricity gathering in her hands.

"Denjiho!" She cried, letting a ball of electricity loose, slamming into Kenpachi's back. The man flinched involuntarily, for a moment letting his grip on the sword loosen. Ichigo took the opportunity, and pushed Kenpachi's sword aside, swinging his own blade into the man's side, as hard as he could. It felt like chipping away at a rock, but he did draw blood, and when Kenpachi counterattacked, he could just barely dodge. As frightening as this was, as little damage as they were doing, they were moving better, a bit faster than the captain. Maybe, just _maybe_…

"Tatsuki, can ya keep him occupied for a couple seconds?"

"It damn well better be just a few seconds!" Tatsuki shot out, narrowly sidestepping what might have been a Tatsuki-flavoured shishkebab.

"Oi, you think I'll let any one of you rest?" Kenpachi said. "You better both fight, or," he lashed out at Tatsuki time and again, the girl taking several small hits, "or you'll just die, and that's no fun."

"Talk is cheap!" Tatsuki cried, and shunpoed behind him. He hadn't once used shunpo, she noticed- either he wouldn't do it, or he couldn't. They had no real edges in this fight, but this was… something.

Quickly, coming from the side, she slammed a knee into his kidneys. "Raiendan!"

Once again, it did little to nothing, but she managed not to get her head lopped off, and that was what mattered. Somersaulting backwards, she landed on her feet, clacking her brass knuckles together, ready to face him. Kenpachi, wearing that shark's grin, came at her again.

Then, reiatsu surging from Ichigo almost explosively, the ground around him cracking, she could hear it,

"_Tsuki no kizu!_"

Five blue lines shot out, immediately followed by five arcs of immense power. She just barely managed to jump out of its way. It had hit; it was a solid hit, he hadn't even tried to dodge…

Kenpachi was down on one knee, a gaping flesh wound across his chest, a large cut across his cheek as well. He was bleeding heavily. Ichigo, for his part, sunk to his knees as well- the attack had all but consumed his supply of reiatsu.

Had they done it? He was bleeding, bleeding, holding himself upright with his sword…

"Well," Kenpachi said, still grinning, getting up from his knees, "I had almost fallen asleep there. Good waking-up move there, kid- and you even got a good hit in. I guess I can take the both of ya seriously, then."

And he reached for his eye patch, and then he took it off. His power surged, surged like an atomic bomb extending its mushroom cloud across a hapless city, and she could swear she saw a skull fluttering behind him, its mocking grin illustrated in black and yellow, like a ghast come to claim her life.

"See, I had the boys at twelfth make me this, since if I go all out, things just die immediately." Kenpachi said, tossing the patch aside. "I need a seal so as to make the fight longer and more fun." He chuckled, and ran his sword through the air, against the closest wall- and the entirety of the wall, the tower it was part of, sliced clean in two, collapsing.

"Holy shit…" Tatsuki mumbled. She felt an emptiness- before this power, she couldn't even feel fear; she was beyond that now. Despair.

And Kenpachi charged forward, towards Ichigo. He brought his sword up to try and parry, but Kenpachi simply cut the greatsword clean in half as if though it were made of wet tissue paper, cutting Ichigo hard across the chest. He groaned, and collapsed.

Tatsuki raised her fists, ready to try and fight- what else was there to do; oh god, what else could she _do_?

But Kenpachi charged at her, and like a locomotive running over a twig, he cut into her, cutting downwards from shoulder to hip. Before she had even had the chance to let out a cry of pain, Tatsuki collapsed, unconscious before she even hit the ground.

The dust settled, and Kenpachi looked at the two ryoka he had just destroyed.

"Well, balls." He said grumpily. "And here I thought I could go all out, and they just go down in one hit each… che."

Muttering, he grabbed his eye patch, putting it back on. He'd need to see to his wound; it was bleeding badly- but it could wait till he'd had some sake.

"Ken-chan!" It was Yachiru, only just returning. "Aww, you had all your fun without me. Stupid Ken-chan!"

"They was nothin' special." Kenpachi said, shrugging. "Decent for some human kids, I guess, but they didn't even last fifteen minutes. Less than one when I went all out."

"Ken-chan, you destroyed a tower again!" Yachiru cheered happily. "Uno-chan is going to be mad at you!"

"Shaddup!" Kenpachi said, putting the little girl on his shoulder and walking away. "Let's just get back to the division."

From a nearby tower, far from the rampages of the fearsome captain of eleventh, Tatsujima Katsuro, Fourth seat of division two and leader of one of the _onmitsukidou's_ elite teams- usually commanded by their half-wit of a fukutaicho, but currently, thankfully, led by himself- stood, awaiting the captain's leave. As he was gone from the field of battle, he said,

"Secure the two ryoka. Prepare to administer first aid- we don't want them to die just yet. Soifon-taicho will want to talk to them."

Five of his fellow officers nodded, but the sixth one just said,

"Yes, I imagine she would."

"Soichiro?" He said. Wait- you're not-"

And then Soichiro- not Soichiro, no- had slammed a fist into his solar plexus, moving faster than anyone had though possible, knocking out the entire squad in seconds.

"No, I'm not Soichiro." Yoruichi mumbled, as she took her agent's mask off, knocking Tatsujima out cold. "Soifon…" She sighed. The _onmitsukidou_ was really on point; they hadn't slacked off in her absence. Still, knocking one out and stealing his uniform and then infiltrating his unit hadn't been _too_ hard…

Quickly she jumped down- she had to act quickly if she wanted the two teenagers to survive.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Within the very center of the Seireitei, right next to the barracks of Squad One, but still a good bit away from the Senzaikyu, lay the parliament building of the Central Forty-Six – the government of all of Soul Society. Consisting of representatives of all the major noble families, as well as some select wise residents from all over the Rukongai, the men of the government were divided into two groups: Forty wise men- and the occasional woman- whose responsibility was to govern, and six judges, whose duty it was to enforce the law. Together, these sages ruled over the entire Soul Society as well as the Gotei Thirteen, all in the name of the Soul King, the true and rightful leader of the afterlife, who, along with his guard, resided within his own dimension, and rarely made his presence known to those in the Soul Society.

But of course, this all was easier said than done.

With them being situated within the very center of the Seireitei, and consisting almost entirely of nobles, who, in most cases, hadn't left the walls of the Seireitei in their entire life, very little was done to change the conditions out in the Rukongai. They were not unaware of the plight commoners faced- but it was all too easy to accept that 'it's just the way of things', and they had received no command to improve the soul society, only to keep it in order. The commoners out in the Rukongai could all just look after themselves, or be ruled by one of the warlords that lived far out. As long as they posed no threat to the central power of the Gotei Juusantai and its ruling elite, it was a matter of small consequence to them.

Of course, many of the commoners were not too happy with that – but with nobility being protected by the walls of the Seireitei as well as the shinigami of the Gotei Thirteen, there was nothing that they could do about it. The buildings of the Central Forty-Six were in all likelihood the single most well-protected place in Soul Society.

They ought to fear the Gotei, Aizen thought. It was, of course, unthinkable to those so bred on privilege that the divisions would even think about deposing them. Yamamoto was well known for his loyalty, for his strict adherence to order and the authority of the soul king, that it would never be an issue- yet, this collection of callous sages would be so easy to kill for so small a force of shinigami. A squad of low ranked officers could get rid of them in an hour. Yet there they were, confident in their power, when their power was so illusory, resting on the very real power of the Gotei itself.

It was not as if they were incompetent- they knew how to preserve and how to rule; nobody was let in without the permission of the Soul King, and he did not play favours- but they were cold and callous. Their crime was not corruption- corruption would imply that once, they had been pure- but indifference, indifference to suffering beyond the scope of any decent contemplation. They knew, and they did nothing.

But even so, even by the standards of the inner Seireitei, parliament of the Central Forty-Six had an absurd level of security. While the men and women guarding the complex were all obviously shinigami, they didn't belong to any of the Gotei's Thirteen Squads, and were all recruited and trained from noble families and their servants, forming a force that only followed the orders of the Central Forty-Six. While none of its members had a level of power that could compare to one of the thirteen captains, most of them were still strong enough to easily keep up the security – without the explicit permission of the Central Forty-Six and the guard force, absolutely no one, not even the captains, were allowed on the grounds of the parliament.

Which just made it all the more odd when just a day after the death of Squad Five's captain, Aizen Sosuke, two captains walked on the grounds of the parliament, completely ignored by the guards, who did not even seem to realize that they were there. Entirely undisturbed, the two made their way towards the parliament building – or rather, towards a tree standing right in front of it.

Obviously, the tree itself was hardly the captain's goal – it was rather the man standing under it. A man that the entire Gotei Thirteen believed to be dead, and yet was perfectly alive: Aizen Sosuke.

"The two of you are late." Aizen chided the captains, Ichimaru Gin and Tosen Kaname, bemusedly.

"I apologize, Aizen-sama." Tosen said, a blind, dark-skinned man with black hair. "It was rather difficult for us to leave our squads without causing too much suspicion. According to some recent reports, the captain of the Eleventh seems to have found and fought the two shinigami ryoka. Leaving in the wake of that fuss was simply not that easy."

Aizen waved his hand dismissively. Of course, Kaname would apologize for this... the man's genuine loyalty simply made him an excellent subordinate. Getting him to join his cause had been an easy thing to do, and an excellent decision on top of that. "Unsurprising. It was only a matter of time before they came across someone capable of overpowering them... but regardless. Gin, I hope that everything went according to plan?"

"You betcha, Aizen-sama. Yer fukutaichou did make more of a ruckus than I thought she would, but nothin' too unexpected. T'was quite fun, really." Gin said, smiling his usual smile.

"Very good..." Aizen said coolly. Sometimes, he marveled at the sick mind of Gin's. Sadism really was a thing to behold, and a good reminder that he needed to be wary even of his allies.

"Well then... it is about time that we begin." Aizen noted, walking slowly into the parliament of the central Forty-Six. Even now, as no less than three captains walked right past them, none of the guards paid the slightest bit of attention to them. Aizen could not help but smile, inwardly at least – the power of his zanpakutou's Shikai made this all too easy. Perfect illusions, tricking the target's vision, hearing, and even perception of reiatsu... none of the guards even realized that any of them were there. True, the more people were being affected, and the stronger the targets were, the more the use of his power exhausted Aizen – but people with strength as trivial as that of these guards were hardly an issue.

Before long, Aizen, Gin and Tosen had reached the parliament's central chamber, where its members were busy in counsel. Stopping at the middle of the floor, right before the circular assortment of benches serving as seating for the sages, he waited, and deactivated the illusions of his Zanpakutou. It took nearly a full minute before his presence was acknowledged. Slowly, the mumblings of the old men and women in the room died down, and each pair of eyes turned their direction, looking down on them sternly with the authoritative glare of a parent about to discipline a rambunctious child.

"Aizen Sousuke, captain of Squad Five." The man who spoke up was the most senior of the six judges, the De Facto leader of the conversation. He had some long, very elegant name- Aizen didn't even remember it, nor did he care. "This is most irregular. Though you have been given the authority of a captain as result of your hard work and dedication, interrupting a session held by us, the governing body, is a not a right you possess. Explain yourself."

Aizen let out a small chuckle. For some reason, the complete and utter authority in his voice, the absolute certainty of his power, amused him enough to crack his carefully held mask. "It truly is amazing..." Aizen said. He had spoken quietly, barely louder than one would be if they were to say something under their breath, and yet, he could easily tell that everybody in the room had heard him. "Even as you are about to face your doom, you continue to look down on it, as if you really consider the power of the Gotei to be your own."

"How dare you speak to us like that! Explain yourself!" The man repeated, his voice a mite stricter. "You will-"

"Gin." Aizen said.

Gin only raised a sleeve, and through it he let his Shinso extend. The blade ran right through the senior judge's skull, blood and brains sullying his seat as he fell over.

"You- you killed him! How dare you!" The judge next to him cried, his voice pitched high enough to be called a squeal- but not for fear, but disbelief and anger. "You will be hanged for this- arrested, executed, tried, tortured-"

"Killed him?" Aizen asked in played surprise. "You are mistaken in referring to this as murder, my dear members of the Central Forty-Six. This wasn't murder - this was only the first act to the execution of each and every single one of you. And not only that... this is the beginning of a new order for all of Soul Society."

As if to punctuate his words, Shinso had run the other judge through the heart as well. It occurred to Aizen that the smile on Gin's face wasn't just the unnerving mask he had cultivated ever since he was a child, but now a genuine expression of joy. There were tells, and they were subtle- but he had known Gin for a long time, and as he was now, taking lives, he was enjoying himself. Ichimaru Gin was a sadist and a homicidal sociopath, and it was exactly why Aizen had handpicked him. His cause required many deaths, and through him, Gin's killings would be given a purpose. The thought was soothing.

"Kaname." Aizen said.

Tosen nodded, stepping forward, activating his shikai. Being the man of ethics- in the warped fashion he was- he let his shikai loose, stunning and disabling a dozen of the council members, before neatly giving each one a fatal cut.

The remaining sages were now in uproar, screaming with fear, running away from their seats, aiming for the exits- but they had all been sealed before they had entered the hall. Letting a slight smile pass over his lips, Aizen slowly and deliberately fired one kido after another, each one killing a councilman. It felt good. _Where is that authority now?_ He felt like saying. _Where is that arrogance that let you treat the rest of the world like flies?_

But he didn't, because Aizen Sosuke had self-restraint.

Ichimaru Gin did not.

Soon, pools of blood were forming at the floor where Aizen stood, running down from the seats above, dying his sandals and socks red. It was, if not a pleasurable experience, then at least satisfying.

* * *

oOo

* * *

"She's gone again, isn't she?" Uryu asked, as he was hurrying through the streets of the Seireitei.

"Sure seems like it..." Orihime asked, running only a bit behind him.

Uryu grunted. "I swear, I'll never understand how she works out this timing of hers..."

It was the day after Uryu and Orihime had encountered and defeated Renji – and once again, Yoruichi had left them without as much as a word of advice or anything similar. True, right now they were not exactly in danger (the only reason they were running was because they were finally getting closer to the Senzaikyu), but... he still would have very much preferred it to actually know if Yoruichi was still with them or not.

After they had left the place where they fought Renji, it had not taken long for Yoruichi to lead them to the next safe place to stay the night, an abandoned warehouse. Luckily enough, the patrol that had approached apparently did not follow them, most likely because they were treating Renji. Whatever the case, Uryu and Orihime got to spend the night relatively safe, and, thanks to Yoruichi going out once more, with a full stomach. She had even been kind enough to provide them with two shinigami uniforms, no doubt stolen from some barracks.

Wearing their disguises, the duo headed deeper into the seireitei, ever with Rukia in their sights. Before long, though, they were approached by a patrol. Keeping calm, they walked onwards- but then one of the passing shinigami called out to them.

"Hey there!" It was a jolly sort of call, coming from somebody friendly- or somebody trying to seem friendly. "We couldn't help but notice- the two of you are new here, aren't you?" There were four shinigami- lower ranks, Uryu assumed, not too hard to fight- but if they called their friends, it might be another issue.

"Yes, yes we are!" Orihime cheered. Her acting was pretty decent, even though it mainly consisted of her being herself. "Our boss sent us with some… stuff for the twelfth division." Orihime lied quickly, and it was almost convincing.

"Well, it's your lucky day- we're twelfth division." The leading shinigami, a young-looking man with brown hair said.

"Oh…" Orihime said.

"We were given strict instructions to deliver it to the third seat of division twelve or better." Uryu cut in hastily. "As easy as it would be to hand it to you, protocol must be observed. I am sure you are trustworthy-"

The man chuckled. "A stickler for rules, eh? Then let us escort you there- it's close." He took a step forward, gently putting a hand on Orihime's shoulder-

And acting instinctively, Uryu put himself between the man and Orihime, shoving him backwards.

"Hey, friend, that was uncalled for." The man said. "Is she your girlfriend? I didn't mean to step on any toes."

Uryu didn't reply, simply grabbing Orihime, flashing back twenty yards, and behind him, the man turned purple, his skin bulging and expanding, before exploding into a fine gas, blood spraying where he had stood just seconds before.

"That was close." Uryu said sharply. "Pretty nasty strategy- using decoys as bombs."

But given the shocked looks of the three remaining men, the all too human screams as their skin too began to bulge, within seconds exploding, made him realize- these weren't decoys, dolls, or artificial creations. They were shinigami, and somebody was using them as living bombs.

"Oh… my god." Orihime said quietly, sounding as if though she was going to vomit.

"Keep it together." Uryu snapped. "Something is coming."

He could feel it now, a strong reiatsu approaching theirs, blazing away freely- it had to have been masking itself before, or he would have sensed it.

"My, my," came a callous, dismissive voice, "and here I hoped my subordinates would be able to restrain you- then again, taking the two of you unharmed is even better for testing, if a bit more tedious."

The man speaking, they saw as the gas cleared, was like something out of a bizarre nightmare- his face was black, not black as in a deep brown, but painted black. He had the most wicked grin, his white teeth standing in contrast to his face, which was framed by just a little white on the edges. He wore a strange, white hat, and he seemed to have no ears- in their place, there were two brass circles of some kind. He wore a captain's haori, and his hands were white- pure white, and one of his nails was freakishly long.

Accompanying him was a positively normal-looking woman- she might have seemed odd, with her emotionless demeanour, but compared to this man, she was normality incarnate- wearing a custom version of the shinigami uniform, one that for some reason involved a miniskirt.

"Who are you?" Uryu demanded, holding Orihime by the arm.

"Test subjects have no right to ask questions." The man hissed dismissively. "But since I am feeling generous, I will enlighten you: I am Kurotsuchi Mayuri, captain of Squad Twelve - and you are my new research subjects."

A captain. Oh, damn.

"Don't try to run- you would not come far." The man warned in a casual tone. "Come quietly, and I will treat you fairly- I might even let you keep your tongues."

"Orihime, be ready." Uryu said through his teeth. A captain. He didn't seem overwhelmingly strong, but Uryu knew better than to let appearances fool him- this man bore the aura of somebody truly frightening.

Orihime nodded. Then, the man pulled out his sword- a curious variety, its sheath being laced with spikes- and charged, slicing at Uryu. Orihime jumped to the side, and Uryu jumped back, his bow forming. He shot as he dodged, firing arrow after arrow.

"Excellent speed." Mayuri commented, as if he was already writing a report on his experiment. "Capable of firing up to one point five arrows per second - most likely of the type _Heiliger Vernichtungspfeil_ - possibly more. Physical prime for a human being, although preliminary data suggests the subject has yet to reach maturity with regards to Quincy powers."

"Tsubaki!" Orihime cried, sending the sprite towards him. Curious, the captain caught it in his hand. "Interesting. Weak offensive capabilities- either the subject is a poor fighter, or the subject has geared its capabilities towards other areas to compensate." He grinned, and there was something nightmarish about his joy. "There is _so_ much to learn, my little subjects... though I do suggest that you at the very least show me something more interesting, if you are already going to fight."

Uryu swallowed. So this was it – a captain. Just the kind of person that they under no circumstances should have engaged... and they had to fight him. Him, and his vice-captain (if that what the woman accompanying him was). There simply was no way that they would be able to defeat him.

Unless he used _that_ thing.

When they had been fighting Renji earlier, there simply never was the time to actually use it... the vice-captain had been attacking too furiously for Uryu to get the time that he would need, nor was the situation ever desperate enough to justify using it. This man, however, was not even taking them seriously yet... the perfect opportunity to use it.

And, of course, their only chance of defeating him.

His hand trembling, Uryu discarded his bow and slowly reached into his pocket. As he dug through it, Mayuri simply watched curiously – so at least this part worked out. Before long, he had found what he was looking for: A small, cool stone with a smooth surface. Uryu still clearly remembered the words his grandfather had told him... the incantation necessary to make use of the stone. Ever since he had been carrying the stone with him, the words had been stuck in his head. He had hoped that he'd never have to use them... but now it had come to this.

There was no point in hesitating any further. Closing his hand around the stone, Uryu closed his eyes and began.

"_Den Leidenden die Erlösung._" He quietly said, pulling his hand out of his pocket.

"Oh, this is something new..." Mayuri said, a wide grin appearing in his face. "Yes, this is new... seems like I'll be getting an entirely new kind of data from you, too!"

Ignoring him, Uryu held the hand with the stone out in front of him, and formed his energy bow again. "_Den Toten das Leben._" He continued, his voice growing louder. Instantly, his bow changed colour, from its normal bright blue to a dark shade of red, at points even dark enough to be considered black.

"Ishida-kun, what are you doing?!" Orihime shouted, giving Uryu an alarmed expression – but he ignored her, too. "_Im Kampf den Sieg!_"

Without a warning, his reiatsu began to increase at an extreme rate – quick enough for Orihime and the woman besides Mayuri to almost stumble. The captain meanwhile only continued to stare at Uryu, his grin growing even wider. "_Dies ist es, was der blutrote Stein verheißt!_"

By now, Uryu's voice was loud enough for him to almost be roaring. His hand was no longer trembling, and he could feel the power at his disposal – but there was also something else... in his head. He opened his eyes, which had changed from their former dark blue to an almost golden yellow.

When he spoke the final line of the incantation, it was if there were was another person speaking at the same time as him. "_Hermetis Vöglein ist mein Nahm, verlaß meine Flügel und werde zahm!_"

* * *

**Author's Notes:**  
My only regret is that we didn't think to actually foreshadow _this_ thing earlier.

Anywho - here's the obligatory translations for the foreign stuff of the chapter.

Tatsuki's new attack:  
Denjiho - Electromagnetic cannon.  
I might add in that this name - and the way the move is executed - is more or less taken from another series, and a quite popular one at that. I do however doubt that anybody will be able to figure that out, considering that this is the _Japanese_ name of said move - so, yay for creative unoriginality?

Uryu's incantation:  
Den Leidenden die Erlösung - Joy to the suffering  
Im Kampf den Sieg - Victory in battle  
Den Toten das Leben - Life to the dead  
Dies ist es, was der blutrote Stein verheißt - For this is what the blood red stone grants (some liberties taken with this line)  
Stein der Weisen - Philosopher's Stone  
Hermetis Vöglein ist mein Nahm, Verlaß meine Flügel und werde zahm - The bird of Hermes is my name, eating my wings to make me tame

* * *

**And now because nobody asked for it: The entirely unnecessary sequel to a small typo during the writing of the last chapter, taken to its logical conclusion.**

* * *

"...but regardless. Gin, I hope that everything went according to plan?"

"You betcha, Aizen-sama. Yer fukutaichou did make more of a ruckus than I thought she would, though – she even went as far as releasing her other Zanpakutou to fight my vice-captain over which one of these two Harry Potter characters deserves Lily more, Severus or James... it was rather stupid, really." Gin said, letting out a disappointed sigh.

Aizen let out a maniacal laughter entirely befitting of an evil overlord such as him. "Gnyeheharghl! Those simplistic fools! Once my final plan starts, they will be having other worries than which of their OTPs is the superior one!"

Gin nodded. "I agree, Aizen-sama. With what we are going to do, something as trivial as whether or not fictional character are in love with each other will have lost all impor-"

"Because then EVERYBODY shall realize that James and Severus are in fact meant for each other!"

Gin opened his eyes. By keeping them shut, he had missed one important little detail about his boss: He was in fact sitting under the tree with a laptop on his lap, browsing through what seemed to be a website with a blue background, and a lot of pictures – most of which seemed to depict the two men that Momo and Kira had summoned earlier doing imaginative things with each other. "...What?"

In the hopes of finding some last bits of sanity, Gin turned around to Tosen – who however positively beamed at Aizen, giving him a thumbs up. "Aww yeah, man! You've got it!"

"Yes! Now come Kaname, Gin, let us show this ignorant world the resolve of our feels!"


	18. Understanding German make it less cool

**Author's Notes:**  
Like, seriously. Just about every language sounds more cool if you don't understand it. German is no exception.

* * *

Urahara silently stared at the data on the screen in front of him smiling, a very satisfied smile. He was in a room of his shop that was below even the training grounds that Ichigo and the others had been just recently using: His sanctuary, a place where he allowed absolutely no one besides himself – and of course whatever he dragged down to experiment on, which often enough did involve living beings.

Unlike the training grounds above the room, which were designed to look like a barren wasteland (which actually made surprisingly bad battlegrounds), this room looked as if it was taken straight out of a research facility. White walls, white ceiling, white floor, white furniture (consisting mostly of cupboards and tables) – things which were not white in this room seemed to be a rarity. One of these rarities was the computer which Urahara was currently using, which was, as a matter of fact, gray. Right now though, the color of his surroundings was of no concern to Urahara... the only thing that mattered was the data on the computer.

Just as he had expected, the information that could be gathered from the hollow Grand Fisher was nothing short of fascinating. There was little doubt that in the creation of this hollow, somebody – namely, Aizen –had done more than just a little manipulating. The beast's powers were specifically designed to make it an efficient fighter which could make any opponent it faced hesitate at a crucial time by taking on the form of a loved person. In theory, a legitimately threatening ability... but of course, it did have its share of flaws. It could simply be counteracted by facing the hollow with more than one person, or simple rational thinking – Urahara could easily see why Aizen would discard the creature, and drop it off in the world of the living.

But even with these glaring flaws, Grand Fisher still might have some use to him, Urahara thought. Averting his gaze from the computer screen, he instead looked at the hollow, which was currently tied down on a big table in the middle of the room – injured and unconscious, but still very much alive. It really was a shame that Urahara had not gotten around to conduct his experiments on the creature sooner... taking care of Ichigo and his friends had simply been too time-consuming. Experimenting on the creature had been quite entertaining, and of course informative.

Getting up from his chair, Urahara walked up to the table that Grand Fisher was lying on, and put his hand on the hollow's mask. It would be such a simple thing to do, he pondered... remove the mask and turn the monster into an Arrancar, a hollow that had gained the powers of a shinigami – that is to say, a human form and a zanpakutou. By doing that, Grand Fisher's ability would certainly become more powerful. Of course, there would be no point in doing this, unless he could somehow make Grand Fisher loyal to him, and make sure that he would fight for his cause... but then again, there were always methods to accomplish that. He could-

"Urahara-san! Urahara-san!"

Urahara whirled around. A loud knocking was coming from the door – now, of all times...

Determined to punish any unimportant interruption with great fury, Urahara hurried to the door and flung it open, only to find Jinta standing on the other side of it. "What? What is it?!"

"S-Sorry, Urahara-san, but you have a call from Shiba Kukaku! She says that she has urgent news!" Jinta said, taken aback by Urahara's angry reaction.

"This better be worth it..." Urahara grumbled. "Tell her I'll be there in a minute."

Nodding quickly, the young, red-headed boy hurried off without another word. Looking after him, Urahara sighed. He still was not quite sure why exactly he had chosen mod souls which acted like small children and put them into fitting gigai bodies so that they could work for him... sure, on the one hand, they were both efficient and provided him with some interesting research data at the same time, but often enough they still got on his nerves.

But there was no use in thinking about that now. Quietly, Urahara went back into his research room, shut down the computer and made sure that Grand Fisher would remain unconscious, before leaving the room and sealing the door behind him. Walking purposefully slow, Urahara went upstairs. If Kukaku said that she had important news for him, she meant it... though she really could have picked a better timing. In any case though, no matter what was going on, it was most likely nothing too unexpected, or something that would require him to change his plans in any way. No need for hurry.

Two staircases later and a few minutes later, Urahara finally entered the room where he kept his own video screen for communication with Soul Society, which currently showed a rather annoyed Kukaku. "'bout time you showed up, Kisuke. What's been taking you so long?"

The shopkeeper gave her an innocent smile as he sat down in front of the screen. "Your timing. I was in the middle of evaluating some data from one of my experiments, and I don't really like being interrupted when I do that."

"Bah, your little nerd stuff can wait. This news is way more important than that could ever be!"

Urahara chuckled. "Well, well, is that so? Before you just had my attention, but now you have my curiosity as well! Let me hear it."

Kukaku grinned triumphantly. "Alright, so here goes: One of the captains, Aizen Sosuke is dead – killed, they say."

"Old news, what of it?" Urahara sighed, waving his hands dismissively.

Kukaku gave him a blank stare. "...Is there something wrong with my ear, or did you honestly just say that the death of a captain is _old news_?!"

"No, your hearing is quite right. I have already long since expected that something like this would happen – in fact, I have already been wondering when it would finally happen. So, if you don't have anything of some actual importance to tell me, I would like to resume what I have been doing before you interrupted me to waste my time with something so unimportant."

"Oh, I'm _so_ sorry that the death of a friggin' captain isn't interesting enough for the great Urahara Kisuke." Kukaku grunted. "How about this piece of information then? Those kids have been found out. The entire Seireitei has been locked down, all Squads are chasing for two groups of ryoka."

Urahara shook his head. "Unfortunate, but not unexpected – and unless they have already been captured, unimportant as well. If that is really all that you have to tell me, I will be taking my leave now."

Kukaku frowned. "No, that was all... but tell me, why the hell is the death of a captain unimportant to you?"

"You are wrong in assuming that the death of a captain in general is unimportant to me... it is simply the death of this particular captain that is not unexpected to me. In less than two weeks time, you will know what I mean."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Sitting in her lonely cell, staring out the one lone window, far up on the wall of this massive prison, Rukia sat, all melancholy. She had said nothing to Renji, even when she had sensed his disappointment- he had tried to hide it, but there was nothing to hide between childhood friends- because she hadn't had the heart to tell him that she wanted him to fail, to stop before he threw his life away, to end that determination.

In any other circumstance, any other day and any other time besides these miserable prison days, she would have smiled, and inwardly cheered- Renji had such amazing potential, greater than her own by far; he had a bright future ahead of him.

And he was about to throw it away for her sake.

And so, apparently, was Ichigo. And Tatsuki. And Orihime. And even that antagonistic Quincy. Why? She couldn't possibly fathom. She had gone willingly! She had accepted her punishment, accepted her fate- why couldn't they? She had had a good run. A hundred and fifty years was a good, long time to live, and she had filled it with bright memories. There were plenty of regrets, but there could be many more- she had, in the weeks she had been incarcerated, come to terms with the fact that she would die. That her existence and entire being would end, her consciousness wiped from reality, leaving only fading impressions of herself in the memories of others. It was a final end ahead of her, and though it had frightened her at first, though she had quietly bemoaned her fate, cursed in frustration, she had accepted it. She was a criminal, and whether she thought her punishment was fair or not was unimportant- no, it was fair; karma for the lives she had touched and twisted. Ichigo's, and Shiba Kaien's both, and now Renji- she had accepted oblivion. Why couldn't they accept that choice?

They were taking on forces beyond their reckoning. Well, Renji didn't, and it made him all the more foolish- but Ichigo had no idea what he was doing, and it would get him killed. If they allowed any last requests, she would plead for their lives- that arrogant, stupid boy!

He had been such a strange acquaintance to make- at first cynical and dismissive, but so quickly revealing that to be a façade. And now he was charging in like a hero, like a white knight out to rescue a damsel in distress.

But this was no fairy tale. This was real, and the enemies he faced were older, stronger and so much better than he was, skill or no skill. He might get killed for her sake, when she didn't even want to live- and that was probably her biggest regret right now. Ichigo's sisters would weep for him, and his mother would be crushed- and it would be all her fault.

…of course, there was no way he had come here on his own. Somebody had to have helped- Urahara, of course. What were they up to?

Perceived acceptance of her fate or no, Rukia's mind was filled with doubts and fears, no matter how much she tried to be at peace with death- Death, who wasn't an enemy to fight, but a kindly caretaker to embrace in due time, against whose cold and bony hand all struggle was ultimately futile.  
But for some reason, Ichigo and his friends had decided to fight Death, like mice charging into a den of pythons, believing they could make a difference.

They could not, impossibly help her- it was obvious. She wished she had believed the Soul King listened to prayers; if she did she might have done so, as a desperate last resort.  
As it stood, she simply brooded silently, hoping for a miracle not for herself, but for her foolish friends.

It was only after she had quietly stared out of her cell's window like that for another few minutes, hanging after her own thoughts, that she realized that was something off in her view. From where she was, she had a fairly good view of the Squad Four barracks – not that it mattered to her right now, that is. Staring out of the window had for her merely been a distraction from her cold and featureless cell, so the view had meant nothing to her.

Now however, things seemed quite different. One of the towers that belonged to the barracks of Squad Two had been destroyed – and not in a way that it reduced to rubble, or made it collapse. No, instead, the tower seemed like it had been cut clearly in half by an enormous sword. If she squinted her eyes, she could even make out people hurrying about the place, probably doing repairs or something along those lines.

Cold shivers ran down Rukia's spine. There were few forces within the Seireitei that could cause such a level of destruction – and even these forces knew better than to unleash their full strength here. Only a captain could cause something like that... and a captain would only such power if they wanted to make sure that their enemy would die.

Which meant that somebody had died. Threw their life away to rescue hers.

All because of her.

Unable to avert her gaze from the destruction outside, Rukia began to shiver. She didn't even notice it when tears started to quietly roll down her face.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Through a wall of pain, Tatsuki opened her eyes, only to realize that she was blind- or rather, she was being blinded. Light shone down on her, into her face. She blinked, looking to her left, then her right, her eyes slowly adjusting to her surroundings. She appeared to be in a cave, which would explain why her body ached- aside from the burning ache already coming from her wounds, of course- with light from the cave's mouth just about reaching her face. She looked around- how had she gotten here? Where was Ichigo? Feeling a sudden sense of alarm, she tried sitting up. The experience was a little like being hit by a sledgehammer; pain shot out like fire burning at her body, emanating from a long stretch going from her hip to her shoulder. She let out a cry of pain.

"Don't try to move." It was Yoruichi's voice, and the tone of it made it apparent that she was not in cat form. She sounded so uncharacteristically sullen; she would usually sound almost teasing, as if everything was a big joke. Not so right now.

"What… happened?" Tatsuki managed. "That… that _freak_ took his eye patch off, and then… then…"

"You lost instantaneously." Yoruichi confirmed. "Don't worry- Ichigo is safe too." Tatsuki turned her head just a little, as much as she dared, and saw Yoruichi pointing a little further down the cave to what looked like a bloody pile of rags and bandages. "You are both very lucky to be alive."

"What the fuck even was he?" Tatsuki mumbled. The shock of their defeat, it all felt… unreal, somehow. It had been like trying to turn the tides or run water uphill. It was like taking on a titan- which was probably the best analogy so far.

"He is Zaraki Kenpachi." Yoruichi said flatly.

"Yeah, he said." It was Ichigo, who had somehow managed to prop himself up in a sitting position. "That was just… he was a monster."

"_Kenpachi_ isn't a name." Yoruichi said. "It's a title, given to the best swordsman in the Gotei Thirteen. The best fighter. And he is more than worthy of the name."

"So we just happened to run into their strongest card? No wonder we lost." Tatsuki groaned.

"Strongest?" Yoruichi said, shaking her head. "No. Their leader, Yamamoto, is the strongest. I can think of at least three other captains who could beat Kenpachi. Kenpachi is strong, but not the strongest- in fact, in a way it was lucky you met him."

"That was _lucky_?" Ichigo blurted out, his voice all disbelief.

"Think of it as a silver lining. He is incredibly powerful, but he's never trained with a sword- he doesn't know any schools of swordplay, only how to kill people efficiently."

"For a guy with no training, he sure was out of my league." Ichigo mumbled. "He was so strong, and so _fast_…"

"Experience." Yoruichi said. "That, and he is the only captain I know of who intentionally limits himself to become weaker." Seeing the quizzical look of her two protégés, Yoruichi explained, "he thinks of combat as 'fun'. If he always went all out, there would be almost nobody who could keep up with him. So he makes sure people have a chance. He offered you to let him hit you, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he did." Ichigo nodded. "Shit, that's… weird."

"That's the lucky part. A better captain would have taken you down in less than a minute. Luckily, he gave me time to find you before it was too late."

"So… we're lucky, I guess." Tatsuki mumbled.

"The two of you almost died." Yoruichi said, once again emphasizing that unpleasant fact. "Especially you, Tatsuki- that cut was so bad, I had to first hide Ichigo, then carry you off on my own, because I was afraid your body would literally split in half."

"Exactly." She said, frowning- she looked concerned, a little worried. "I managed to fix the worst of the damage, but you're still weak. Once the two of you have recovered enough, I know of a place that can heal you up fairly quick."

"Holy shit…" Ichigo mumbled, his face in his palms. "So that's the power of a captain?"

"Kenpachi is exceptional." Yoruichi said. "He has no control, no training, and he is the Gotei's most fearsome swordsman. More importantly, he doesn't know the name of his sword, as far as I know."

"Are you kidding me?" Tatsuki groaned. "This guy sounds like a total rookie on paper."

Yoruichi nodded. "And yet he's one of the strongest. And that brings me to the second part of this conversation: it's time we took your training a step further."

"We're barely alive, and you're talking training?" Ichigo grumbled.

"One day for you to recover." Yoruichi said firmly. "Then another three to train."

"I don't see what training could do at this point." Tatsuki said.

"Not any old training- bankai training."

"Whatnow?" Ichigo said, sounding confused.

"The final stage of a zanpakutou. A release beyond that of Shikai. Its truest power realized fully."

"Please tell me you're just pulling that out of your ass right now." Tatsuki said bemusedly. "I mean, how come nobody ever said anything about that before?"

"One thing at a time. We didn't want to worry you too much." Yoruichi shot back.

"So… we can get this in three days?" Ichigo said.

"Normally, it takes about ten years to achieve, and only then if the zanpakutou has synchronized completely with its user. Then, another ten years to master it."

"…so this is three days. Compared to twenty years. I don't think there's any amount of spirited eghties rock montages that could pull that off."

"We have a shortcut." Yoruichi said, sounding tired. "It's not without risks, but it's doable."

"And with it, we could fight a captain?" Tatsuki chimed in.

"Not exactly, no. But your survivability would get better. You'd be able to do just enough, hopefully."

"So what's that bankai thing like?"

"In short, it increases the user's ability greatly- something like releasing Shikai again if you already have it activated. It usually manifests as a new ability of sorts. Kisuke devised a way to achieve it very quickly- but he was already an experienced shinigami when he did it."

"Well, let's do it, then." Ichigo said resolutely. "We're still saving Rukia, and if this is what it takes to move forward, then so be it. Right, Tatsuki?"

"Damn right." Tatsuki said, trying her best not to move too much. Almost getting split in half was plenty of cause to take the medic's advice- if Yoruichi could be called a medic; she wasn't sure exactly how she had done it.

"...But why exactly do we need this now? I mean, it's not like it's guaranteed that we'll be fighting another captain or anything." Ichigo asked, after both of their feeling of resolution had died down a bit.

Yoruichi sighed, shaking her head. "It's not that easy anymore. While you were almost being killed by Kenpachi, his fukutaichou Yachiru has taken Hamtaro and the fukutaichou of Squad Two to the barracks of Squad Eleven. Hamtaro knows your name, Ichigo, and he will report it to his captain. And once his captain knows, it won't be long before Kuchiki Byakuya knows, too – and he will be able to put two and two together. I am pretty sure that by the time that you have recovered, the Senzaikyu will already be heavily guarded."

"And I suppose our only chance of getting through that is this Bankai." Tatsuki stated more than she asked.

"You got it."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Hanataro moved around on his chair uncomfortably. He couldn't help but to think that he should be happy right now: After all, he was no longer in the custody of the ryoka, and therefore no longer in danger of being attacked by other shinigami, because they believed him to somehow be on the side of the intruders. In fact, everything was pretty much alright now – he was back at the barracks of Squad Four, no longer in mortal danger, and had even received permission to take some time off to recover from the shock of being kidnapped by terroristic intruders. In theory, it was all hunky-dory.

Except that in reality, it was _not_ hunky-dory.

When Hanataro had first woken up after passing out from the immense pressure of Zaraki Kenpachi's reiatsu, he had found himself in a particularly unpleasant scenario: Namely, in a sleeping room of Squad Eleven's barracks, buried under the still unconscious body of Squad Two's Omaeda Marechiyo. Had Hanataro at first thought that after waking up under these circumstances, things could hardly get more unfavourable for him, life quickly proved him wrong. After unsuccessfully trying to move the unconscious vice-captain off him for several minutes, he got a visitor. Of course, in itself, given the circumstances, that wasn't too bad – but if the visitor was Kusajishi Yachiru, it _was_ bad.

Instead of actually helping him out, the little girl wasted little time jumping on top of Omaeda, only to proceed to use his belly as a trampoline. It took Hanataro several minutes before he actually caught her attention, and a rather awkward, but nicely formed request for help to get her to move Omaeda down from him. By the time that Hanataro was freed of the vice-captain of Squad Two, he felt like he had been run over by a rhinoceros multiple times.

After this, he had mostly stumbled about the Squad Eleven barracks, not entirely sure if he should report everything that had happened to him to a member of this Squad, or if he should simply head back to Squad Four to report it there. The decision was ultimately taken out of his hands, though, when he came across Squad Eleven's fifth-seat, Ayasegawa Yumichika, who had received orders to bring him back to the Squad Four barracks.

But of course, the unpleasant parts didn't just stop there.

Had Hanataro expected that he would simply have to report to his Squad's vice-captain once back at the barracks, he was instead taken straight to the captain of Squad Four Unohana Retsu – which was, all things considered, very easily a more fearsome experience than anything that he had seen while he was with the ryoka, including the approach of a bloodthirsty Zaraki Kenpachi.

And this was where Hanataro was right now: Face to face with Unohana Retsu, who was giving him the most gentle of smiles, while he was waiting for her to start the conversation – mostly out of fear of what could happen if he were to speak up first.

"So, Hanataro-kun..." Unohana finally broke the silence, causing Hanataro to cringe "since you were in their custody for a while now, what can you tell me about the ryoka?"

"Err..." Hanataro began "they are just like the reports said that they were. Tall ginger-haired guy, and a black-haired tomboy. And, uh, both kinda violent. But, err, can't you see that for yourself? I mean, Zaraki-taichou has probably captured them by now..."

Unohana frowned at him, which, in a way, was even more unsettling than her standard smile. "Unfortunately, Zaraki-taichou was content with simply defeating the two in battle, and left them lying around once he was done – and before the members of our Squad who were observing the battle could move in to capture them, they were knocked out by a woman who had somehow infiltrated them. Since Madarame Ikkaku of Squad Eleven and Omaeda Marechiyo of Squad Two are both still in a state where neither of them can tell us anything, and Ayasegawa Yumichika didn't really learn to much about them, you are the only one who knows anything about the ryoka. So, what do you know about them, Hanataro-kun?" She asked, her expression slipping back into that disturbing smile of hers.

Hanataro could feel cold sweat starting to run down his body. This was the exact kind of attention that he had _not_ wanted to get. "W-Well, they... for ryoka, they actually were actually rather friendly to me. They didn't really hurt or threaten me or anything... they actually just wanted me to heal them. Only reason they didn't want to let me go was because I knew where they were. And, uhh... their names are Ichigo and Tatsuki."

Unohana raised her eyebrow, causing Hanataro even more cold sweat. "I see... very well. Did you learn anything about their motivation? Or the identity of this woman that is aiding the two?"

Trying his best to swallow his fears, Hanataro thought about the question for a moment, and ultimately shook his head. "...No. They made sure that I wouldn't learn anything about what they wanted to do. Err... the only thing I know is that whatever they wanted to do, they need to do it within a week and a half. I-I don't really know much about the woman either... I know that she has dark skin, purple hair, and that she can transform into a cat. And, uh... I think her name was Yoruichi, or something like that."

Unohana stared at Hanataro quietly, an unreadable expression on her face – and one that made him wonder if he would survive this, at that. Only after continuing to stare at him for what seemed like ages, Unohana finally spoke up again. "Alright. If this is all that you know Hanataro-kun... then you're dismissed. You may leave now."

Blinking a few times, Hanataro just sat there, not entirely sure if he had heard correctly. Then, once he was certain that he had in fact heard correctly, he quickly stood up and left the room, still unable to fathom his unexpected luck.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It all just felt _wrong_.

While Orihime had never been very good at sensing reiatsu and the like, right now, even she could easily tell that whatever Uryu had just been using, it was not meant to be. Had his reiatsu previously felt – well, normal, or at least as normal as she could tell, it now was entirely different. If she didn't know any better, Orihime would have thought that she was standing next to a wild beast... a wild, _sentient_ beast, which had just awoken from a long, long slumber, and was now looking around to see if there was any prey nearby.

But that was only how it felt... in reality, all that could actually be seen was Uryu just standing there. Both his bow and eyes had changed color, yes, and he only seemed to be staring at this captain standing in front of them, but he looked like he was still himself.

"How very peculiar..." The captain – Mayuri? – said in a curious tone, as if this all just was only a mild surprise to him. "Change in the color of the iris as well as the composition of reiatsu seems to suggest that the subject has somehow harnessed the power of a hollow, without a doubt through the use of the red stone artifact... but how? How can such a small thing cause such noteworthy change in strength and type of reiatsu?"

Uryu said nothing in response. Instead, he slowly raised his bow, and got ready to fire, aiming right at the captain's chest.

"_Leuchte._" He said, in this weird, echoing voice – and then he shot.

It was as if he had, for the lack of a better term, shot a beam. A bright red beam of light, bigger than any of his arrows had ever been, radiating with a strength that Orihime had never felt before. The beam shot forward, right towards Mayuri-

And then he was gone, having moved himself out of the way of the attack, the woman still standing beside him.

"Ah, of course you are not going to make it as easy as telling me what this is... but of course, where would be the fun in that?" Mayuri let out a mad cackle. "I do have to admit, though, that this kind of strength might become dangerous if I am not careful... oh well, there is no helping it, I suppose. Nemu, observe everything from now on, and take notes. Interfere under no circumstances." He said, adressing the woman next to him, as he unsheathed his Zanpakutou, licking his lips as he did so. "Rip, _Ashisogi Jizō._"

The blade morphed, and the end result looked bizarre, more like some strange ornament than a weapon. A brass yellow trident-shaped sword it was, each blade crooked, so unlike the straight weapons they had seen so far. At the base of the blade were the metal, stylized image of a child's weeping face, and the sword did seem to glow menacingly.

"_Orihime_. " Uryu said calmly. "_Will you be able to help?_"

"Y-yes." Orihime said shakily.

"_Good. Then shape up, and stop trembling. This is a fight for our lives._"

What creeped her out wasn't the passion in his voice, that it was hateful and so unlike him, but that it was so… calm, almost apathetic. It sounded just like Uryu, an unreasonably calm and confident Uryu, and she found herself wishing he had spoken with the voice of the legion instead.

"I got it." She nodded, pulling herself together.

And Mayuri charged forward, stabbing at Uryu, who oh so quickly flashed away, reappearing twenty feet away. Gleefully changing targets, Mayuri brought his blade down on Orihime. She flinched, but didn't freeze:

"Santen kesshun!" She cried, and the sword impacted solidly with her shield- and to her surprise, it did not crack it.

"Fascinating." Mayuri said. "Shield comprised of spiritual matter as of yet uknown-"

And then he gave a cough, and blood poured out his mouth. Uryu was standing behind him- _how had he moved so fast_- bow strung with a second arrow ready, the first already having run the bizarre captain through the chest.

"_This is not the time to be conducting analysis._ " He said gleefully, and suddenly Orihime found herself wanting that monotone voice back. He let the arrow fly; Mayuri dodged narrowly, flashing away- and behind him, a small building was leveled. Holy smokes.

"You pestering little rats!" Mayuri sneered, seemingly unperturbed by his chest injury. "You are both damn lucky I need you as test subjects- you will regret ever having been born when I am done!"

"_Only a true fool gives away a tactical advantage like that._" Uryu shot back, sounding at once smug, cool, in control, gleeful. "_You are not much of a fighter, are you? You have the bloodlust and the desire to kill, but if you lack the strength... in a serious fight, you get eaten._"

"I think I'll take out your tongue, boy." He snarled, swinging his sword up.

"Tsubaki!" Orihime cried, sending the sprite out; she had to do something. Once again, Mayuri caught it.

"Strange." He said. "The spirit is now encased in an orange box- perhaps for extra protection-"

"I reject!" Orihime cried, and there was a soundless explosion, and Mayuri let go of Tsubaki with a yelp, his fingers bleeding. Orihime wasn't quite sure what she was doing, but she knew she had the power to reject- so she had rejected this monster of a man, and it had hurt him.

"_You best not underestimate us._" Uryu said, sounding as if his blood was pumping, full and hot. He sent out a swarm of arrows, each one demolishing whatever it hit. Mayuri dodged each one neatly, jumping back- until suddenly he slammed into one of Orihime's shields, throwing him off for just the blink of an eye – which was all the time Uryu needed.

"_Zerreiße!_" Charging a long, strong, dark red arrow, he shot and hit, right into Mayuri's abdomen. Blood poured out, soiling his robes.

"The two of you are really being _annoying_." Mayuri spat- and blood and wound aside, he seemed unaffected, as if though the concept of pain was alien to him. Furiously, he charged forward, flashing at Uryu, hacking wildly. Uryu kept up, moving just fast enough to dodge, evade. Orihime tried to find an angle, to set up another trap, but they moved too fast- she was being left behind; the two of them taking to the rooftops. Hurrying after, she began to climb. As she tried her best to get up, the sunglasses that she had taken from Hasegawa fell off her face and onto the ground – but they hardly mattered now.

Once she was at a rooftop level at last, the chase was still going- it had been minutes, and Uryu was still moving too fast, shooting as he moved- but Mayuri too was fast, and what few hits landed he seemed to ignore. It was unlike any fight she had ever seen, either player unable to touch the other.

Finally, the two of them were coming closer, Uryu moving towards her. He shot her a look- was he herding the captain towards her. Encasing her hand in a glowing orange box of rejection, Orihime steeled herself as the captain finally landed on the same rooftop as her.

"I have to say," he said as calmly as he could, his voice in a slight huff, "you are more than a little troublesome, the two of you."

"_I will take that as a compliment._" Uryu said.

Letting out a frustrated cry, Mayuri sped forward, charging at him. Uryu sidestepped, and now Mayuri was coming almost right at her-  
And it was as if time slowed down; she remembered what Tatsuki had taught her, how to move and how to read an opponent…

Her fist connected with his left arm. It was meant to hit his shoulder, but she had missed- either he was too fast, or she wasn't good enough.  
But it didn't matter. Like a knife going through butter, her hand went through his arm, ripping it clean off, dissolving it before it hit the ground.

She gaped. Equally dumbstruck was Mayuri, who seemed amazed.

"You impudent little nothings!" The man screamed. "How dare you? How DARE you?! I am a captain of the Gotei Thirteen! I was already alive when even your grandparents were little more than runts who knew nothing of life and death! I am one of the strongest men that you will find within all of Soul Society, and I have killed more humans, shinigami, hollows and Quincy than you could possibly hope to imagine! I will not be defeated by mere pretentious test subjects such as you... no, I will instead beat the two of you to a bloody pulp! All that matters to me is that you live, and that is not hard to accomplish!"

His reiatsu began to grow enormously, and he raised his sword. Startled, Orihime lost her footing, tumbling towards the edge of the roof. Uryu just barely caught her, pulling her to her feet.

"BAN KAI!" He cried, and it was as if his already massive reiatsu warped, convulsed, expanded enormously. "_Konjiki Ashizogi Jizo!_"

Behind him, something like a true nightmare formed. It looked like a caterpillar, a caterpillar the size of several houses, its chest lined with blades and most grotesquely of all, carrying the face of a child, letting out a twisted version of a weeping baby's cry. It was enormous, like a vision from some cruel, drug-induced vision of terror.

And though it seemed not to have any eyes, it stared at them. Orihime had once read a story about a monster called the Great Old One, which appeared only when the stars were right, and had tentacles for a face, and had wondered if she would ever see something at all like it. Now she had, and it was terrifying.

The creature raised its upper body, and let out a breath, and a massive cloud of purple gas let loose, enveloping the buildings around them, coming right for them. Uryu grabbed her, and moved back quickly, several blocks down.

"_Interesting._" He said. "_That- so that's the power of a shinigami. I wonder how we'll beat it._"

"Beat it?!" Orihime blurted out, turning around to give Uryu an incredulous look. "We can't beat that! It's enormous- there's gas everywhere, people are dying- he's too strong! He isn't even slowing down, and now he has… _that_."

"_We can do it._" Uryu said confidently, holding up the stone. Only now, she actually noticed his expression... it was confident, yes, but there was also something else. Somehow... Uryu seemed _strained_. It was as if this fight had exhausted him way more than it should have... and how did it come that Mayuri was barely injured from the minutes of the fight that she hadn't seen?

"...Is that you talking?" Orihime asked cautiously.

"_What? Of course it is._" Uryu said irritably, raising an eyebrow- _was the white in his eye starting to turn black?_

"Then give me the stone and say that again." She said determinedly.

"_What are you talking about?_"

"I think that… _thing_ is doing horrible things to you, Ishida-kun." She said, not flinching. "Give it to me and say it again if you want to prove you really mean it."

"_No!_" He shot back, almost shouting. "_It's mine- I can handle it!_"

As if to prove his words, he raised his bow once more, got ready to fire, his hand trembling... and then let lose. "_Pfeilhagel!_"

He unleashed what seemed to be a hail of laser beams – red, fast, bright and deadly. From their initial starting point, the arrows spread out, covering an area that grew wider the further they traveled. Anything that got hit by this would end up riddled with holes… and yet, Uryu missed both Mayuri and the creature that he had summoned entirely. "_What the-?!_"

Acting quickly, Orihime took Uryu by the wrist, forming an orange box around his hand. With a bit of force, Orihime picked the stone from it. It felt hot to touch the thing, like a strong spice against her skin. "Do you still want to fight this?"

Uryu blinked, his eyes slowly turning normal again. By now, he looked visibly exhausted, with his breath going heavy, and sweat running down in his face.

"Look at it again. Feel it, Ishida-kun. You're not strong enough right now- you used a lot of your reiatsu. This is all the stone, isn't it?"

"…yes." He mumbled. Mayuri was approaching them now, the bankai moving slowly behind him, a hellish and smug smile on his face. "You… you're right. Even if we win, everyone everywhere will know where we are. That big thing is slow-looking... maybe we can escape now."

"Good." Orihime nodded encouragingly. "Then let's run."

"Oh, test subjects!" Mayuri cackled gleefully. "Not so high and mighty now, are you- come quietly, this is your last chance-"

And then he saw the quincy grab the girl, and take off at breackneck speed. It was incredible, it really was- that quincy _hirenkyaku_ was a thing to behold-  
And then it occurred to him.

"They are getting away!" He shouted angrily. "Go get them, you useless beast!" He swore at his bankai, which lumbered down the street, trampling buildings… at a snail's pace. Mayuri swore.

* * *

After twenty minutes of intense running, dodging into alleyways and finally hiding, with no direction or purpose other than to be where that maniac was not, Uryu and Orihime finally stopped in an abandoned backyard.

"Do you think we lost him?" Orihime said anxiously.

"I can't sense him- I think he must have dismissed that bankai a couple of minutes ago, because I stopped feeling its reiatsu very suddenly." Uryu replied, still breathing heavily. That stone… it had been like a thousand voices crying out for only him to hear, screaming in anguish, despair... and in bloodlust. They had been asleep for so long, and now that they had awoken, they wanted to let others feel their suffering, let blood be spilled by their power... and after a while, Uryu had started to feel as a part of them. When Orihime had severed the connection, it had been like waking up from a dream.

"What do we do now?" Orihime said, snapping him out of his racing thoughts.

"I…" Well, the idea was to find Rukia still, but now the hornet's nest had been kicked, and people would be positively everywhere- the only advantage they had was that the chaos caused by the rampaging captain might work in their favour; chaos was indiscriminate in its application.

"Let's hide out for a while, then try to find-"

And that was as far as he got before a dart hit him in the back. Instantly he spun round to face his attacker, a dark shape in the shadows, fleeing- but then he felt a weight descend onto his shoulders, nearly knocking him off his feet- somebody was grappling his arm. He twisted around, trying to get an angle- but yet another attacker had come in from the side, punching him in the kidneys, then in the solar plexus- the last thing Uryu saw before keeling over was Orihime, wrestled to the ground by black-clad men wearing masks.

To himself, Uryu swore. After what they had been through, this just felt unfair.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Soifon, commander of the executive militia, the _onmitsukidou_, chief of intelligence, policing and assassination, surveyed the scene. Several blocks leveled; barracks buildings and storage areas destroyed. Gas released from the Bankai still dissipating. And most of all, the corpses. Strewn every which way, there were dozens of bodies, some partially dissolved, all twisted in unnatural death cramps. All of them were shinigami, fellow soldiers whose only mistake had been to be out at the same time as the mad captain of division twelve.

And there he was, an arm short but seemingly unperturbed.

"Ah yes, Soifon." He said dismissively. It was infuriating- not only did he treat her presence like a formality, he seemed to have forgotten her title as well. "I suppose you will need me to make a statement for one of your precious reports."

"Did you do this?" Soifon said. She prided herself on her self control (most of the time), but she found it hard to sound entirely disinterested.

"What, this?" Mayuri said, gesturing to the havoc around him. "Yes, I suppose I did- I ended up using my Bankai, and things can end up a mess when I do that. Can I return to my lab now? I have data to analyze-"

"Millions and millions worth of property damage." Soifon said coldly. "Reckless usage of Bankai as well as chemical agents. A body count of thirty-one and counting- and those are _allies_. You have managed to wreak a lot of chaos and accomplish absolutely nothing. Your incompetence is astonishing."

"I don't expect you to understand the merits of science, woman." Mayuri said dismissively, "but I expect you not to waste my time. If you'll excuse me-" He made to move past her.

Instantly, Soifon's hand shot out, grabbing the mad scientist by the collar and slamming him into a wall. "You are going to make a statement." She said coldly, in a tone that brooked no disagreement.

"Oh, fine-" Mayuri grumbled.

"In a prison cell." Soifon added. "Kurotsuchi Mayuri, you are under arrest for massed destruction of Gotei property, irresponsible use of force and thirty-one cases of manslaughter _and counting_." Really, all she wanted was to tear the psychotic little freak's head off, but the law had its course to run, especially for captains.

"You cannot be serious!" He exclaimed angrily, apparently incredulous that he might be held accountable for his actions. "I am a _captain_-"

"And I am commander of the onmitsukidou." Soifon said harshly. "If you don't remember what that position allows for, I'll remind you: I may at any time arrest any officer below the rank of soutaicho who I have cause to suspect has abused their seat of power, and to detain them indefinitely. You will spend time behind bars, you incompetent little monster."

"Get your hand off me, you insolent little woman!" Mayuri barked, his one hand clawing at Soifon's arm.

"Make that resisting arrest as well." Soifon said, with some satisfaction.

The scientist gave her a mad glare, his face distorted into a mask of rage, and his eyes twitching. "The soutaichou will hear about this!" He hissed.

"Oh, of course he will." Soifon responded, almost smiling. "I will tell him myself."

* * *

oOo

* * *

With the chaos that had been caused by the captain of Squad Twelve fighting the pair of ryoka, a chaos arose among the Squads of the Gotei, bigger than anything else that what had happened since the first sighting of the ryoka, including even the death of Sosuke Aizen. But in all this, the fact that one of the captains had been driven to a point where he deemed it necessary to make use of his Bankai unsettled the shinigami of the various Squads almost as much as the deaths of their allies that came along with them. After all, if a captain was forced to make use of the true extent of his powers, what chances would a regular officer stand?

In the light of this, the fact that one of the two ryoka groups had been caught was received all the more warmly. Only two more ryoka remained – it shouldn't take too long before the omnitsukido had gotten a hold of them, too. But once the news had spread far enough, people began to wonder: What was it that the ryoka wanted to accomplish, anyway? Of course, the captains knew more than what was known among their squads, but obviously, they were not going to share their information.

All that the Squads knew was that in the night of the same day where the first ryoka had been caught, members of the Squads Six and Ten were being ordered to the senzaikyu to increase the security, causing many of them who had already been sleeping to rush towards the prison, as to not upset their captains by being too late.

One of these shinigami was the third-seat of Squad Ten, Hitsugaya Toshiro.

Currently, however, Hitsugaya was not out on business- he should be, but some things took priority. Like finding your childhood friend who had broken out of prison to make sure she didn't do something she- and by extension, he himself- would regret. She would be in a terrible state, no doubt- she had worshipped her captain; he was her hero- she had barely been able to shut up about how perfect he was. It had made him concerned- at first he had thought it was jealousy, but there was something mildly obsessive about her behaviour, there was no denying it.

And now he was dead. Who knew what Momo might do? It wasn't as if he didn't think he'd have trouble subduing her; in fighting ability alone he was better than most vice captains quite easily, but… it was Momo, after all.

Then he sensed it, just faintly, something like a couple hundred yards away. It was Momo's signature, alone and inactive. Quickly, he slipped into a shunpo, hurrying to greet her.

He found her sitting in a garden belonging to division two, on a finely crafted bridge over a pond- say what you would about the backstabbers from second, they did have nice recreational areas.  
Momo was slumped over, her head hanging low. It looked as if all energy had gone out of her, like a sadly deflated balloon. Quickly, he approached her.

"Momo." He said urgently. "Momo, are you okay?"

"Shiro-chan." She mumbled. "I…" she trailed off.

"You can't stay here." He said, walking up to her. "You are supposed to be in the arrest- go back now, and I'm sure they'll understand." He put a hand on her shoulder- but she recoiled at his touch as if though he were a poisonous reptile, slapping his hand away. Surprised, almost hurt, he looked at her. "Momo…"

"Shiro-chan," she said, glaring at him from under her hair- normally so neat, now it was messy and untangled- "tell me the truth."

"What?" He said, bewildered.

"Tell me the truth." She insisted, getting to her feet. She looked at him, and she would have looked menacing if not for the fact that she was five feet tall and, well, Momo.

"What do you mean?"

"Just admit it already!" She burst out, tears coming out her eyes. "I read the letter- captain Aizen knew everything! He told me, because he knew he was going to die-"

"Calm down." He said, positively befuddled. What on earth was going on?

"I'll not calm down!" She almost shouted. "Here- see for yourself!" From out her shihakusho, she picked a letter, throwing it at his feet. Carefully, Hitsugaya reached down, picking it up, reading it while keeping an eye on Momo. Then, as he read the letter, his eyes widened.

"..._but to you and you alone I can reveal all I know about this conspiracy, at the center of which not only the ryoka stand, but also the third seat of Squad Ten, Hitsugaya Toshiro. They are involved in a plot to overthrow the Gotei, and establish a new order in its place. I fear that the murder of one of the captains is only going to be the first step to this plan. Without a doubt, Hitsugaya Toshiro hopes that the death of a captain will allow him to join their ranks. I will confront him about his plans this very night. Should I not survive the night, I will need you to follow in my footsteps..._"

Hitsugaya stopped reading and looked up. "Momo, this is crazy- I'd never do this!"

"But Aizen-taichou said it was! He'd never lie to me!" her voice was a shrill cry now, tears streaming down her face. Poor Momo- she loved him like a little brother, and now she thought she had to choose between him and her dead hero. This was madness.

"Snap, Tobiume!" She cried, drawing her sword. The blade changed shape, and she attacked – but of course Hitsugaya had moved out of the way before she even got close.

"Please Momo, don't do this..." Hitsugaya pleaded desperately. "This just isn't true – I wouldn't do this, _you know_ I wouldn't do this!"

Momo however remained silent, instead letting a flame run down her blade, which quickly grew in size.

Only now, Hitsugaya drew his zanpakutou. "Momo, _please_... don't make me fight you..."

The only response he got was Momo beginning to charge another fireball. Hitsugaya swallowed, and raised his sword. It seemed like there really was no other way to do this. "Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens, _Hyorinmaru_!"

His sword morphed, changed shape, becoming longer, and growing a long chain with a small crescent blade attached to it. As the blade transformed, the air around got colder and colder, until the temperature reached a point that it usually only reached during winter in the seireitei. By the time that the blade finished its transformation, Momo had already let another fireball lose – but this time, Hitsugaya was prepared. Gathering reiatsu on his blade, he slashed, firing off a large flow of ice, shaped like a dragon.

The two attacks collided in the air, and just as Hitsugaya had expected, they cancelled each other out, creating a large amount of steam as they did.

"Please stop this, Momo..." He began to plead once more. "If you continue to attack me, I'll have no choice but to take you out... don't make me do this!"

Through the slowly clearing steam, Hitsugaya could see that at the very least, she was not preparing to launch another attack. He let out a relieved sigh. It was something... maybe now, he had a chance of getting through to her and-

"Geez, can't a captain go out fer a walk at night without findin' some trouble?"

Involuntarily, Hitsugaya jerked. Ichimaru Gin- of all people! "Captain, I-"

"I think I just 'bout got the gist of the situation here, third seat." Ichimaru said, smiling as ever. "Poor lil' Momo-chan's gone mad with grief, the dear lil' thing- losin' your hero can do that to you. Losin' her wits fer just a second, she blamed ya, and attacked." He scratched his head. "Poor, poor Momo." He added, sounding about as genuine as a crocodile's tears.

"Ichimaru-taicho!" Momo cried, and if possible, her distress seemed to worsen. "You- you!"

"Ichimaru-taicho, she…" Hitsugaya began.

"Now, don't ya all get yer titties in a twist- I'll handle this." Gin said, and for some reason Hitsugaya felt like he might as well have said 'let me just rape the two of you'.

"Taicho, I was just about to take her back to her cell." Hitsugaya said, regaining his composure.

"What a coincidence- me too, third seat. Well, ter be strict- back ter a cell in third."

"She belongs in fifth!" Hitsugaya blurted out, ignoring rank. There was nothing to trust about this man, not even as far as he could throw him (which, incidentally, was probably quite far).

"But third's closer, and it don't matter where she's bein' incarcerated." Gin said smoothly. He was enjoying this, the smug fucker.

"Second's even closer." Hitsugaya objected.

"Naw, surely I didn't just hear you suggestin' we leave poor Momo-chan with the mean ol' second division? We don't want ter trouble Soifon-taichou- the lil' girl works so hard, and you _know_ how she feels about criminals, even if there're… mitigatin' circumstances, like temporary insanity."

That was probably the first and only valid objection- Soifon was notoriously strict, to the point where people were afraid of even littering anywhere close to second division. "But-" he objected, trying to think of an excuse. Anything to let Momo go with him and not… this man.

"Naw, naw, Shiro-chan-" Hitsugaya flinched at the name; only Momo called him that- "I hate ter remind you, but a captain is two ranks higher'n a third seat- an' as captain, I'm takin' charge of this poor criminal. She'll be back an' rehabilitated in no time, don'tcha worry- we'll take good care of ya. I'm sure she'n Izuru'll have lots ter talk about."

"…" Hitsugaya stood dumbstruck. This… man was surely a monster. Everything about him, here and now, projected not the usual Ichimaru, the trickster who you never knew where you had him, who was mildly creepy- here and now, he felt like a snake, toying with caught mice.

"Don'tcher worry." Ichimaru said, putting a hand on Momo's shoulder- Momo now looking docile, almot paralyzed. "Everythin' will be fine."

Hitsugaya wanted to cut his head off, take him down, end him- but he had neither the strength nor the rank. He would have to check up on Momo, make sure nothing happened…

"Naw, I think yer got business, runnin' around searchin' fer the last of the ryoka, don'tcha?" Ichimaru said smugly.

"…yes, captain."

"Hop to it, then- and don' forget to deactivate yer Shikai. I'm freezin' my ass off here." He said, turning around, walking away with a hand on Momo's shoulder. Deep inside, Hitsugaya felt equal parts loathing, a sense of violation, and hate.

* * *

oOo

* * *

If there was just one thing that Tatsuki had to give to that Zaraki-brute, it was this: He had been _very_ efficient at beating them to near-death. By now, it had already been about eight hours since the man had cut her and Ichigo up, and even now, she was still in so much pain that it felt like that berserker was busy murdering them. Ever since she had first woken up in this cave, Tatsuki had directed most of her efforts to falling asleep again – in her current situation, sleeping was the only real alternative that she had to lying around on her back with nothing to do other than trying to endure the pain. Actually, falling asleep did however turn out to be a bit less possible than it sounded in theory, with Yoruichi constantly hurrying around them, and checking their situations.

By now, Tatsuki was seriously starting to doubt that she and Ichigo would be back into a state where they'd be able to actually train by tomorrow. Sure, if she was to try hard enough, she could probably stand up right now – but even that wouldn't really last long. While she could only guess, Tatsuki supposed that it was the same for Ichigo, who, just like her, was still lying around on his back, having been mostly silent in the past few hours. The sheer thought of going through another training session tomorrow already made the pain more noticeable.

In fact, silence had dominated the vast majority of the past few hours: Even Yoruichi, who hadn't left their side even once, had barely said anything, except for maybe quick orders to turn around, or raise a specific body part, so that she could check their condition. Due to this, it came all the more surprising to Tatsuki when in the late evening hours, Ichigo broke the silence and spoke up. "...Where exactly are we, anyway?"

Yoruichi, who for the past few minutes had been sitting on a nearby rock, hanging after her own thoughts, raised her head and gave Ichigo a blank look. "This cave is a place that me and Kisuke dug up many years ago... back when we both were still young, and had only recently joined the Gotei."

Tatsuki got up a bit to get a better look at Yoruichi, to see if she had been joking or not- which however did not seem to be the case. "The two of you once were in the Gotei? Are you serious?"

"There's no reason to act so surprised, you know. I mean, what else should we have been?" Yoruichi asked, smiling weakly at Tatsuki. "But yes- both Kisuke and I were members of the Gotei, many years ago. Captains, even."

Tatsuki slowly sat up. "If you were both captains, then why did you leave? I mean, isn't being a captain, about the best job you could get around here?"

"Be careful! I don't want your wounds to open up again!" Yoruichi said, giving Tatsuki a concerned look. "But to answer your question... we didn't exactly choose to leave. There simply was an event that forced us both to go into exile. That's all that you need to know about that."

Tatsuki didn't say anything in response, remaining silent instead. Yoruichi was right – there really was nothing to be surprised about. Tatsuki had always known that both Yoruichi and Urahara were rather strong shinigami... but that both of them had once been captains, she hadn't really expected, regardless of how logical it seemed now. Hell, the more she thought about, the more Tatsuki thought about it, the more she couldn't help but to think that she knew just about nothing about the two – a thought which Ichigo seemed to share.

"So wait." Ichigo grunted. "If you were a captain... why exactly didn't you help us in any of our fights? With your kinda strength, we would've reached this prison in no time!"

"True- your fights would've been easy." Yoruichi admitted. "But with me fighting, the Gotei would have quickly realized with what level of strength they're dealing with here, and would've send out the captains... and out of those, more than half would be too much for even me to handle. Just because I am strong, it doesn't mean that I'm invincible."

Ichigo sighed. "Point taken... I suppose I'm just looking for excuses to complain about at this point."

"As if you needed excuses to complain about everything..." Tatsuki mumbled under her breath – which did however not get lost on Ichigo, who glared at her.

"Well, you being able to complain again is a good sign, I suppose." Yoruichi noted, grinning. "If your conditions continue to improve at this rate, I think I'll be leaving to check on Uryu and Orihime in another hour or so... I haven't looked after them since yesterday evening."

Tatsuki gasped- over the entire almost-dying thing, she had almost forgotten about those two. "Do you think that they are alright?"

"I hope so. The last time I left them, they had just defeated a vice-captain, and had to help them escape a patrol that had noticed their battle. They were safe when I left them, but there is no telling what has happened to them since then... especially since they are already rather close to the senzaikyu."

"You know, now that you mention it..." Ichigo raised his voice once more, in the exact kind of unpleasant tone in which one would say "Oh, and another thing", after the end of an argument. "Where exactly is this cave? From what I remember of the seireitei, I can't really imagine a place where a cave as big as this one could be hidden away."

Tatsuki turned around to look at Ichigo, who was still lying on his back, and raised her eyebrow. That _was_ a surprisingly good question.

For a moment, Yoruichi didn't say anything. When then she finally did talk, she only did so reluctantly. "...This cave is on the side of Sokyoku Hill, concealed by some vegetation on the outside. Only Kisuke and I know of this place."

Tatsuki didn't even need to look at Ichigo to know that he basically catapulted up from his lying position. "We're this close?!" It burst out of him. "But- if we're this close, why sit around here, and wait? Let's get out there right now and get Rukia before-!"

"No." Yoruichi said strictly, instantly shutting Ichigo up. "Did you already forget the bit about your name and increased security that I told you about? Going in there now, without Bankai, is nothing short of suicide."

For a moment, Tatsuki felt like pointing out that this entire mission was pretty much suicide, but ultimately decided against it. Fueling Ichigo's desire to go out there right now was probably not the best of ideas. "So, uh, Yoruichi-san, how did you get us here, anyway?" Tatsuki asked, in the hopes of successfully changing the subject.

Yoruichi gave Tatsuki a thankful look, and pulled something which looked a bit like a bright white claw attached to a long, dark red rope from behind the rock she was sitting on. "I have used this thing here – not sure if it even has a name. It's an old artifact of the Soul Society, which allows its user to fly by putting their reiatsu into it... it's easier to actually do than to explain it."

Ichigo eyed the artifact warily. "So if I used to this, I could-"

"_No_, Ichigo!" Yoruichi shouted. "Are you even paying attention to what you're saying anymore? You have just been beaten to near-death, and you already want to go out, and put yourself into danger again?! Use your brain for just this once! We still have _time_. There is still over a week left before Rukia's execution takes place – more than enough time for you both to heal, and do your Bankai training. I know that you don't like trusting me, but just this once, please _do it_."

Ichigo stared at Yoruichi defiantly. For a moment, it seemed like he wanted to say something, to continue the argument... but in the end he remained silent, and just lay down, muttering something along the lines of "Fine" as he did.

Tatsuki turned to Yoruichi. "You sure we'll heal in time? We're really busted up."

"You'll heal." Yoruichi said. "I know enough kido- and soon, I'll move you to the healing spring."

Tatsuki nodded. "Could I have some water?"

"Sure." Yoruichi said, walking further into the cave.

And then, as if he had waited to spring into action, Ichigo bolted- or rather, awkwardly tumbled- out of his rock bed, struggling to get himself up to his feet, grabbing the artifact.

"Ichigo, no!" Tatsuki blurted out. But it was too late- the artifact had wrapped around Ichigo's wrist, a massive wing springing out of it, pulling him out of the cave's mouth, into the air. He was taking flight, so quickly…

"Shit!" It was Yoruichi, just back. "Tatsuki, you're the sensible one- I need you to promise me you'll stay put. Okay?"

"…yeah, sure." Tatsuki said. What an _idiot_. Quickly, Yoruichi flashed away, following the young hothead as quickly as she could.

* * *

He was flying, soaring like a bird. His wounds ached, but he was sure he could move. He was so close to Rukia now- just grab her, and they'd be out of there. A part of him cynically pointed out that this was completely idiotic, but he was set. He couldn't quite tell why he'd made the decision- something inside him had just snapped, knowing his goal was so close.

It was either now or never: Ichigo doubted that even with Bankai, they'd be able to defeat any of the captains, who had their owns probably for way longer than he even lived – and knowing their luck, if they waited too much, they'd inevitably run into a captain after their training. No, now simply was the best time to go in... even if there was no time to convince Yoruichi and Tatsuki of it.  
He could see the tower now, so close. Best not to land on the actual bridge, that would be too conspicuous- no, he had to set down a small ways off, then move quickly. There'd be guards, but that was nothing he couldn't handle.  
_Just wait, Rukia. I'll save you, and then… it'll all be over._

* * *

oOo

* * *

Standing on top of the bridge that connected the senzaikyu with Sokyoku Hill, Kuchiki Byakuya quietly overlooked the nightly seireitei. As per the head captain's commands, he had sent a vast majority of the stronger shinigami of his squad to guard the senzaikyu... to guard Rukia.

Byakuya still found it hard to believe that all the commotion of the past few days, all the fights, injuries and chaos, yes, even the death of his fellow captain Aizen Sosuke – that it all could have been nothing more than the result of this substitute shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo changing his mind. It was simply too unlikely... after all, when he had left him, Kurosaki Ichigo had willingly given up his powers, and had been content with letting Rukia go. Not to mention that the Quincy that had been with Kurosaki had hardly been a threat to a vice-captain at the time...

And yet, they both seemed to be here, in the seireitei. The description, yes, even the name that the young Squad Four shinigami that had been in the custody of the ryoka had given, they all fitted Kurosaki, as impossible as it seemed. Even the Quincy, who Byakuya had taken a look at, after he had learned that the shinigami ryoka was most likely Kurosaki, did turn out to be the exact same boy that he had seen in the world of the living... except that now, he seemed to be strong enough to defeat Renji in a fight without taking any remaining injuries, (supposedly) kill Aizen Sosuke, and almost overpower Kurotsuchi Mayuri.

There were more things at work than just these ryoka, Byakuya thought. There was no way that Kurosaki could have regained his shinigami powers, no- even gain genuine shinigami powers all on his own, just as there was no way that this Quincy could have hidden or gained such an amount of power. Not to mention their respective companions... another shinigami, probably a living human as well, and a normal human being with powers not unlike that of a shinigami- it was an absurd oddity.

Though this oddity did not come without a name that could possibly explain at least some of this: Yoruichi. Byakuya still remembered the exiled head of the Shihoin clan vividly... as much as he would like to forget her. Together with the former captain of Squad Twelve, this woman had been exiled about one hundred years ago. Could it be that they were behind this all, somehow? But if so... why act now, after one hundred years, and why, of all things, try to rescue-

Rescue Rukia.

Byakuya sighed as his thoughts trailed back to his adopted sister once more. There technically was no more reason for him to be staying around here... the actual assigning of the guards had already been finished hours ago, for both the members of his squad, and the shinigami of Squad Ten. And yet, Byakuya was still here, unable to decide whether he should actually visit her or not.

In theory, there was absolutely nothing wrong with paying Rukia a visit. It did not go against any laws or regulations of the Gotei, and even if it did, most of them would not affect a captain. In theory, nothing would have been easier than to actually enter the prison, and go to Rukia's cell. But of course, it was another matter entirely whether Byakuya could actually get himself to do it.

The date of Rukia's execution drew closer and closer – and with the current situation, it being pushed forward was not too unlikely. While Byakuya himself had not even once visited Rukia since retrieving her from the world of the living, he clearly recalled Renji asking for permission to visit her rather recently. It had taken Byakuya nothing more than just a quick look at Renji's face (who was never good at concealing his emotions) after he returned from the visit to figure out in what mood his vice-captain had found Rukia. Beyond any doubt, she had resigned to her imminent death, believed in her own fault, and thought she deserved this punishment... it had all been easy to see in Renji's angry expression.

The knowledge that Rukia was sitting in this prison, willing to let her life end, pained Byakuya. He wanted nothing more than just see her once more, one last time before it all ended... but at the same time, he knew that it would be better if he did not visit her. He would only see her sister – his _wife_ – Hisana in her, and his resolve would falter.

Byakuya shook his head lightly, a gesture of reassurance to himself. He could not let this happen. He _would_ not let this happen. Letting his resolve falter would only be the first step to turn against the decision of the Gotei, and breaking the law – something that he could never allow, because _the law was the law and the law was everything._

No... he simply had to stay strong, and endure it all. It would all be over soon enough-

Suddenly, Byakuya interrupted his musings. He had sensed an approaching reiatsu, but had been distracted enough that it had only been at the corner of his mind- and truth be told, he had never expected that any of the ryoka would make it this far in; he had seen no reason to be on alert. Sure, there were claims that they had killed Aizen- but he hadn't believed it for a second; somebody like a captain would never be felled by lowly ryoka.  
So now, when an unconscious guard tumbled out from around a corner, followed by a shifty-looking young man, who looked every which way before moving on, heading towards the bridge, Kuchiki Byakuya found himself surprised for the first time in years. The filthy little ryoka had apparently not seen him- well, time to change that.

Swiftly he slipped into a shunpo, appearing in the middle of the bridge, right before the dumbstruck ryoka.

"You have some nerve." He said, keeping his emotions perfectly controlled. Though he felt conflicted- as much as he hated to admit it, even to himself- there was no doubt when it came to the practical aspect of carrying out his duty. In a way, it was soothing- the mild loathing he allowed himself for these audacious intruders was distracting, like balm on a burn.

"…who are you?" The ryoka said. Apparently noticing his coat, he said, "Oh- _you_."

Byakuya raised his eyebrows. The ryoka had spoken as if he had recognized him... with fear in voice, but still in a manner unbecoming of such a lowly criminal such as him. Only now, Byakuya's eyes wandered off to the ryoka's hair, the color of which he had previously not been able to recognize in the dark... which turned out to be red. "Kurosaki Ichigo?"

"You're just figuring that out now?" He said, and wouldn't you know it- the ryoka even had the nerve to speak to him with disdain, as if though the wronged one was he. "Well, I do know who you are, too. You're Rukia's good-for-nothing older brother. The one who won't save his little sister from getting killed."

Inwardly, Byakuya felt the heat of fury rising. He wanted to cut out Kurosaki's tongue and make him eat it, show him his proper place as an ignorant commoner- to indulge in rightful revenge. How dared he?  
But Kuchiki Byakuya was nothing if not in control of himself, and simply replied,

"You know nothing, Kurosaki Ichigo... though I do not expect a petty ryoka such as you to understand the affairs of nobles. But know that you are breaking the law of the Gotei Thirteen, which I am sworn to uphold." Slowly, he pulled out his sword, and let his reiatsu begin to rise and flare. He sensed a slight change in the ryoka's reiatsu signature, but he didn't need to sense it to know- it was fear, greater than before; the dawning realization that he was outmatched and about to die. He seemed injured, too- what was he even thinking?  
Well, no matter.

Smoothly, he slipped into a perfectly controlled shunpo, reappearing almost instantly behind the ryoka's back. He would come in, hit the exact right spot just below his clavicles, and let him bleed out from that one fatal hit. He deserved no less.  
To his immense surprise, however, his blade did not smoothly slide through flesh and bone, severing arteries and muscles. It was greeted with steel, just barely deflecting his blow. This… was extraordinary.

"I guess I forgot to tell ya," The audacious little boy said, grinning like a lowly thug, "I ain't going to go down just like that."

Byakuya didn't reply, only holding his sword up straight. He was going to allow himself just one gratuity, one indulgence, one excess that nobody would question.

"Scatter, Senbonzakura-" And he could feel the blade happily leaping to obey his will, moving out to kill the ryoka-

And then, a strong arm grabbed him by the wrist, interrupting him.

"What?!" He exclaimed, letting just an iota of his self control slip. Who dared?

"That's a mighty dangerous power to use on a pitiful little ryoka. Good thing I was here to stop ya- there's been a ban on using shikai around the tower for now, due to recent developments."

"Of course." Byakuya said, not attempting to mask his contempt. "Shiba-taicho." That happy-go-lucky disgrace of a nobleman, most prominent member of a household considered the butt end of all jokes among noble families…

* * *

Ichigo stared, dumbfounded. Byakuya's reiatsu had risen, his sword had glowed and he had felt like he was about to die- and now, some weird guy was sitting on the fence of the bridge, holding Byakuya at the wrist- letting go now- with a weird beard that looked like it couldn't decide if it was a heavy stubble or an actual beard, a dumb grin on his face, and more importantly… a captain's haori. Two _taicho_. Great.

"…so just you leave this ryoka to me, Kuchiki-taicho." The man said, acting like he was at a tea party, as opposed to a swordfight in the making.

Kuchiki Byakuya scoffed, turned around, and flashed away in an instant, leaving Ichigo with the strange man.

"Well hallo there, son!" The man said cheerfully. "Wow, you look just like Kukaku described you!"

Wait- Byakuya had called him _Shiba_. The Shiba were allies. Right? Deciding not to lower his guard just yet, Ichigo held out his sword at him.

"Who the hell are you?" He growled. "How do you know Kukaku?"

"Cousin." The man said cheerfully. "Wow…" he said, looking Ichigo up and down. "That's just amazing." He looked like he had just seen something unique, and Ichigo's distrust was deepening.

"I said who are you, weirdo?"

"My name is Shiba Isshin." He said happily. "But come on- we can't just stand around. You're a wanted criminal, you know. Come with me, and I'll explain."

Ichigo's eyes grew wide. "I-"

"Or you could take it up with the onmitsukidou. They already have two of your friends."

"What?"

The man ignored him, walking away from the tower. Hesitantly, Ichigo followed him. He seemed friendly, at least…

* * *

**Author's Notes:  
**So, I think there is a few things here that need to clarified in regards to Uryu and Orihime's fight against Mayuri, since the actual in-story explanation for them will only be given later. Now, in order:  
Uryu's techniques while he is using the stone are all improvised, to a certain extent. Exact reasoning for why he is able to pull them off will follow.  
Orihime tearing Mayuri's arm off is a subconscious extension of her powers- the entire deal with that will be more adressed in-detail as soon as possible.  
If Uryu had continued to fight Mayuri instead of running away, then yes, he would have lost.

The translations for Uryu's improvised techniques are as follows:  
Leuchte - Shine.  
Zerreiße - Tear (as in, tearing apart).  
Pfeilhagel - Hail of Arrows.


	19. Fights don't always advance the plot

**Author's Notes:**  
. . .Which is exactly why this chapter doesn't have any fights.

Anyway - not entirely happy with how this chapter came out, but I do suppose it should still fulfill its purpose quite well. At least I hope so. . .

* * *

Ichigo had to wonder about this "Shiba Isshin". He had taken him on a fairly long walk now, frustratingly far away from Rukia, and all along the way he had been… humming. Happily. He was beginning to suspect that he was probably 'special', at least in one way or another.

Finally, after more turns and streets than he cared to count- he was injured, Ichigo kept reminding him, you really shouldn't be up walking- they finally walked right into… Squad Ten. At the front door. Which was littered with shinigami. Something inside Ichigo cringed.

"This is a shinigami barracks!" He hissed, giving Isshin an impressive glare.

"Well, son, it sure isn't a cookery." Isshin said, grinning stupidly. "What would you expect? A bunch of old women doin' laundry?"

As it was, several shinigami did seem to be occupied doing something like laundry, but that was beside the point. "I'm supposed to keep a low profile!" He said, trying to express anger without letting his voice rise.

"Prisoner of war, everybody!" Isshin exclaimed happily. "Comin' through- I just caught me a big bad ryoka!"

Ichigo's palm met his face, as he heard various shinigami cheer for their captain.

"That's our captain, all right!"

"He's not even in chains, and he's still following him. He sure must have done a number on him!"

"Way to go!"

Finally, the two of them got into a private room- it looked like it might have served as an office, but most of it was occupied by an enormous, shamelessly comfortable-looking sofa, directly facing what looked like the most expensive plasma TV Ichigo had ever seen. And a DVD collection. Several, in fact.

"Well, have a seat… son." Isshin said, taking a seat in a chair next to what looked like his work desk.

"…all right." Ichigo said, sitting down on the couch, only to collapse into it entirely. It really was as comfortable as it looked. Quickly Ichigo struggled to sit up properly, managing it, although without much dignity. "Damn- couch!"

Isshin just smiled. "You know… I waited my whole life for this day." He said, sounding almost solemn. "I wanted to meet you sooner, but there are rules- and fuck rules, fuck them all to hell sometimes, but you have to be careful, and- and-"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo grunted. How had he gone so quickly from cheerful to bumbling, rambling and even weirder?

"Well…" Isshin said, scratching his chin. "I guess I better just say it, or I won't make any sense."

"You're not making any sense to me right now."

"You know when I called you 'son'?"

"Six times, yes."

"Well…" He said, breathing in deeply. "It's literally true! I am actually your long lost father from the soul society! How about a hug, son?" He grinned widely.

"That isn't- what." Ichigo said flatly. "How is that even…" He trailed off.

"Search your feelings, you KNOW it to be TRUE!" Isshin cheered, making a fist.

Ichigo stared at him blankly. Then, without hesitation, he whacked him across the head, as hard as he could. Isshin staggered back in his chair, still grinning like a madman.

"What the hell kinda time is this to make a _S__tar Wars_ reference, you big idiot?" Ichigo exclaimed. "What is wrong with you, you weirdo?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Isshin said, rubbing his head. "I just always wanted to say that."

"I didn't come here to listen to idiocies-"

"Your mother's name is Kurosaki Masaki. Your two sisters are named Karin and Yuzu."

"…big deal. Anyone could find that out." Ichigo shot back.

"Whenever you come back home from a long day at work, she will always have something prepared for you, because she cares."

"Like most Japanese mothers."

"When Masaki scolds you, she has this way of making you feel like you're a stupid little boy, even if you're a big man." He continued, his tone serious. "But you always feel like she wants the best for you. Like she wants you to be better than this, and she believes you can."

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo mumbled- but it was true.

"And when she encourages you, you feel like you can do anything. I bet she told you to get educated- be a doctor, or a lawyer, or an engineer, or a scientist- nothing but the best for her boy. Isn't that right?"

"I'm in law school." Ichigo mumbled.

"And when she-"

"That's enough." Ichigo said. "I knew your name, Isshin- I just didn't hope it could be my old man. Actually, I was more concerned with not getting cut to bits by that Kuchiki dickhead, but uh, the soul society is a big place, and…"

"Ichigo, it's _really me_." Isshin said spiritedly. "Your dad! Your father! Your pa, your old man, your whatever-synonym-there's-left!" He looked him up and down again, and he looked so genuinely happy, Ichigo almost felt convinced. "You grew up to be so strong- you take after your old man, I can tell. Just nineteen, and you're already kicking ass- that's my boy!" He nodded enthusiastically.

"Suppose I accept that maybe, you're my _oyajii_," Ichigo said, nodding thoughtfully,

"Yes?"

"Then I've got a question: Why is my mom crying about you when she thinks nobody's watching?"  
Really, he should be delighted, and part of him was- but there were questions that needed answering, and this alleged father of his was guilty until proven innocent.

"She still does?" Isshin looked touched. "She never remarried?"

"She was too busy supporting three children on one job." Ichigo said dryly. "So, _oyajii_, why weren't you there for my fifth birthday?"

"I…" Isshin said, and there was a look of genuine regret on his face. "Shit happened. Bullshit, mostly. It's… a long story, and I don't think I can tell you all of it right now."

"You fucking owe me!" Ichigo spat. "If you're really my dad, if you were the one who left us and never kept in touch, that's the least you owe us!"

"I know." Isshin said quietly. "I guess I'll give you the abridged version. It was like a fairy tale, really- boy meets, girl, girl meets boy, girl saves boy from soul-eating abomination, boy gets enchanted by girl but gets rejected, except several months later they somehow end up in bed together and fell in love without noticing…"

"A hell of a fairy tale." Ichigo noted dryly, not too pleased with the thought that at some point, his mother would in fact have had to have sexual relations, if only to conceive him.

"Kind of like a reverse fairy tale, I guess." Isshin agreed. "But this is such a post-modern, feminist society that there's no shame in the girl saving the boy, eh?"

"No stupid jokes." Ichigo grumbled.

"Well, to put it simply, your mother and I fell in love. The problem is, I was- am- a captain, and they don't just let you walk out on that. I wanted to, but I couldn't. If they found out I had kids, I was afraid they'd take you away too- they've done some pretty sick stuff down the way, and kidnapping kids for research isn't the worst of it."

Ichigo frowned. "So it was for our own good? Is that what you want me to believe?"

"I'll tell you the full story one day. For now, it's enough that you know that at one point, I didn't really have a choice- so I had to leave you behind. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, and…" his voice broke a little. "I'm so sorry. I really am." He smiled again, looking at Ichigo. "But look at you- you turned out fine! Such a strong shinigami, at such a young age-" He stopped himself. "That had to be Urahara, right?"

"You know him?"

"The Shiba are longtime allies, I guess you could say. He was thick as thieves with Kukaku when they were kids, and it kind of stuck."

"Wait- what about leaving us?" Ichigo wasn't about to let it go. "Why wouldn't you do anything? Send us a message? We were told you were _dead_, and you sure don't seem like you were trying to disprove that!"

"I really wanted to, but… well, I couldn't do much of anything. They were always watching me after that incident- I was lucky Urahara would help me hide as much of it as I did. When you were old enough, like twenty, then I figured I'd approach you- and then Kukaku tells me that you infiltrated the Soul Society, and I had never felt prouder… I was always watching, whenever I could."

Ichigo paused, trying to take it all in. He had explained, at least in part, and apparently there wasn't much time- and there was still Rukia- bloody hell, Rukia, he had to save Rukia- so what to do?  
"This isn't over." Ichigo said. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take- it was a lot to process all at once. His father, a nobleman, captain, happy-go-lucky proud dad? "Let's move on- but let me get one thing straight: I only met you this day. As far as I'm concerned, I don't _have_ a father. Being a father doesn't mean 'sperm provider', it means 'guy who is there to pick you up after karate and tell you that you did well', or some shit like that."

"…I understand." Isshin said. In a way, Ichigo felt like he had kicked a puppy- although he felt liked this puppy had deserved it. A little.

"So anyways, moving on- what will I do next? I'm supposed to be a prisoner of war, as you loudly declared to everyone on the way here."

"I hadn't thought of that." Isshin said, sounding befuddled. "I was uh, too busy. Being happy. 'Cause you're my son and I finally met you." He ended awkwardly, and Ichigo found himself wishing there was more time. How often did dramatic stuff like this happen?

"By the way, how did you find me just before Byakuya was going to dice me into little pieces there? That was one hell of a timing."

"Oh, I have been following the reports that we got on your little exploits, and figured that you might be in the area by now. I stayed around a bit longer to assign the members of my Squad as guards for the senzaikyu, and sure enough, I felt your reiatsu moving close to here, close to Byakuya's- that boy has a stick up his ass the size of the Titanic, by the way-"

"We finally agree." Ichigo mumbled.

"-and then I stopped him just in time."

"You waited till the last moment on purpose, I bet."

"I kinda did." Isshin grinned.

As fate would have it, their first point of agreement was interrupted by a stunning, strawberry blond shinigami with enough chest to make Orihime seem positively flat sliding the door open, walking in without a care. Despite himself, Ichigo let his jaw drop.

"Taicho, you ran out on me _again_." She complained. "Now I had to do that meeting with Thirteenth on my own- and you know how those two get."

"I had a good reason, though!" Isshin cheered. "Here, son- meet my fukutaicho, Matsumoto Rangiku! Rangiku, meet _my son_, Kurosaki Ichigo!"

"You can't just tell people who I am!" Ichigo objected.

"Oh, it's all right- she's an ally. Ain't you, Rangiku?"

"Of course." The woman- Rangiku- said, walking up to Ichigo, taking his hand. "Nice to meet you, Ichigo. It's a shame you're a criminal, but we're not all perfect." As she bent down to take his hand, Ichigo caught a glance- however much he tried not to- of her glorious cleavage.

"I can see why he stayed." He mumbled. It was a joke, if not a very good one.

"Oh, you flatter me!" Rangiku said happily. "No, he stayed because he's a lazy, irresponsible good-for-nothing- it was probably best your mother took care of you."

"But Rangikuuuu," Isshin complained, "you're making me look bad in front of my boy!"

"That's the idea." Rangiku said.

Suddenly, Isshin's face changed, turning serious. "We got company. Rangiku, step out on this one. And don't tell a soul."

"You got it, captain." She said, walking out. "Bye, Ichigo." And Ichigo couldn't help glancing at her backside as she left. _Whoa_.

"If that teenaged brain of yours is quite finished," a voice, changing as it spoke, came from behind, "then perhaps you remember we have a mission."

"Yoruichi." Isshin said, sounding happy. "You still hate clothes, I see."

Ichigo turned around, just to see Yoruichi standing just behind him, naked as usual, giving him a very disapproving look. "It is not exactly hatred, it is more like a pragmatic choice – and right now, the only reason why I am not wearing clothes is because a certain somebody had to rush off like an idiot, without even being entirely healed yet, forcing me to chase after him as quickly as possible so that he doesn't get himself into any more trouble."

Isshin chuckled. "Did you, now? Well, I suppose you're at just the right place then. It's good to see you again, Yoruichi. How long has it been, one hundred years?"

Yoruichi grinned. "You know very well that it has been one hundred years. But the obligatory reunion talk has to wait – right now, I'll need to take your son away from you once more."

"Oh, such inhuman cruelty! I have been betrayed by those that I placed my trust in! Oh, the humanity!" Isshin exclaimed loudly and in acted despair. Ichigo meanwhile just frowned. It wasn't hard to see why those two would be friends...

"Sure you were." Yoruichi said, laughing at Isshin's antics. "But in all seriousness, we will have to leave. I'm kinda surprised that Ichigo is still conscious at this point, given the condition that he is in... his healing process is far from finished, and he'll need to lie back down as soon as possible. Are you ready to go, Ichigo?"

"Oh, so you remember that I'm actually here, after all. How wonderful." Ichigo grunted. "But yeah, I'm ready to go."

"Good then. Isshin, I'll pay you another visit later – there's still some things that we need to talk about."

"Ah, wait!" Isshin said, before Ichigo and Yoruichi could do as much as to leave the room. "Some members of my Squad know that I have "captured" one of the ryoka – if we want to make it believable that Ichigo still escaped me somehow, you'll still need to knock me out or something."

"Oh, don't worry..." Ichigo said, a grin flashing across his face. "That can be arranged."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Lying on her back, Tatsuki cursed inwardly. It had already been way over an hour since they had left – something had gone wrong, she just knew it. By now, Ichigo was probably captured in the very prison that he wanted to free Rukia from, and why? All just because he had to rush off into danger, without any thoughts about the possible consequences. Tatsuki could only hope that Yoruichi would be able to save him now.

But then again... hadn't Yoruichi said that the captains would cause trouble to even her? What if she came across one of them, fought them, and lost? Given how she had talked about the captains, this didn't even sound like too unlikely an outcome... after all, Tatsuki had never seen her carry a zanpakutou or anything like it around. Whenever Tatsuki had seen Yoruichi get into a fight, she just relied on her – admittedly outstanding – speed, her legs and her fists. Not even once did she witness her using a weapon. When facing people that were below her in terms of strength, this could obviously work... but against a captain? A person equal to Yoruichi in strength, if not above her, way above her?

Against her own will, Tatsuki found herself shuddering (the feeling of which was not exactly made better by her numerous wounds). If Yoruichi was captured, or worse yet, killed... if that actually happened, she might as well turn herself in right now, and hope that the Gotei would let her live. Without Yoruichi, their entire mission was effectively doomed – or at least more doomed than it already was. After all... Yoruichi had led them towards the senzaikyu. Yoruichi had helped them find hiding spots to rest and stay the night. Yoruichi had taken care of them after every fight that they had gotten into... and she had saved their lives after Kenpachi had almost killed them. (Had it really been just earlier today? It felt to her like it had already been ages ago.)

Without her around, they were screwed. And not just Ichigo and Tatsuki, either... Uryu and Orihime would be just about done for, too. Here in the seireitei, she was their only ally – and a damn good one at that, too.

Come to think of it, though – exactly _why_ was she helping them? Just what was in this entire deal for Yoruichi, and, by extension Urahara? While Tatsuki had never entirely trusted the shopkeeper, she hadn't been too overly suspicious of him, either: Sure, he was shady, but... at least he was friendly about it. That had to mean something, right?

But even so, there had to be more in this all for Urahara and Yoruichi than just saving Rukia's life, and getting some research data. They were essentially terrorists, fighting against the government of the afterlife. Why would anybody want to support something as risky as that? And-

"_If you are quite done with your pointless ramblings,"_ Raitora's deep voice interrupted Tatsuki's thoughts "_I'd suggest you focus a bit more on your senses."._

Slightly confused over the sudden interruption, Tatsuki sat up as much as her condition allowed it and looked around. The moment she did as the spirit of her Zanpakutou advised her, she could feel it: Two reiatsus quickly approaching the cave – two _familiar_ reiatsu.

Within a matters of a few minutes, the reiatsus came closer and closer to the cave, until they finally entered, turning out to be both Yoruichi and Ichigo – with the former supporting the latter. Tatsuki let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Oy, what's been taking you so long? Did you have to break this idiot out of the prison that he was trying to break into?" She shouted at Yoruichi, hoping that neither she nor Ichigo would notice how worried she was about them.

"I think Ichigo can tell you that yourself." Yoruichi said, as she brought Ichigo over to his original resting place, and helped him lie down on the ground. It was only when Ichigo was lying down again, that Tatsuki noticed that there was something off with him. He seemed weakened, sure, but that was essentially a given, considering that he had just rushed off before he was fully healed. No, there was something else about him... a general vibe of thoughtfulness, and a... solemn expression?

"Ichigo, what happened?" Tatsuki asked, getting confused over Ichigo's appearance.

"Wounds opened up." Came the mumbled answer – not exactly what Tatsuki had hoped for.

"Oh, come on, you know that's not what I meant!" She shouted... only for Ichigo to turn away from her. "Hey!"

Yoruichi sighed and shook her head. "Just let him be. I can imagine why he would want to keep what happened to himself for now..."

Tatsuki gave Yoruichi a skeptical look. For Ichigo to be this quiet, something big must've happened – and something unexpected at that. "Fine... but I'll still want to hear this later."

* * *

oOo

* * *

Raising his head slightly, Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai opened his eyes to give the captain of Squad Two, Soifon, a cold and calculating look, as she entered his office. "Soifon-taichou. I have been informed that you have a report to make." The head captain quietly stated more than he asked.

"That is correct, soutaichou. My report concerns the two ryoka that members of my Squad have recently captured, as well as Kurotsuchi Mayuri-taichou, who had engaged them in combat previously." Soifon calmly stated, as she bowed before sitting down in the middle of the room, before the head captain.

Yamamoto grunted. Sasakibe had already relayed the information regarding these events to him hours ago, and what he heard had not exactly pleased Yamamoto... but even so, the formalities had to be followed, and he had to listen to Soifon's view of the events as well. "Very well then. Begin."

"Yes, soutaichou. As might already have come to your attention, earlier this day, my Squad has been able to track down the second group of ryoka, consisting of a male Quincy, and an apparently human girl with unusual powers. By the time that my subordinates were ready to make their move to capture them, though, the ryoka had entered the grounds of Squad Twelve, where they were attacked by Kurotsuchi-taichou – who, as I might add in, turned several of his Squad members into living bombs against their will." For just a moment, Soifon's expression shifted into a scowl. It didn't last long, but it was enough for Yamamoto to catch on.

"By the time that Kurotsuchi Mayuri-taichou attacked the ryoka himself, there were already multiple casualties as a result of a failed bombing. When Kurotsuchi-taichou then finally did fight himself, the Quincy managed to pressure him into releasing his Bankai, at the sight of which both ryoka fled the scene. The members of my Squad were able to secure them shortly thereafter. Kurotsuchi-taichou, meanwhile, did not deactivate his Bankai for several more minutes, despite the ryoka having obviously long since escaped him. As a result of this incompetence, the poison gases released by the Bankai caused the death of forty-two shinigami, members of both my Squad and the Twelfth. Additionally, both the Squad's barracks, and several other structures were damaged. In order to punish him for his crimes, I arrested Kurotsuchi-taichou."

"I assume the ryoka are now being kept in the cells of the Squad Two barracks?"

Soifon nodded. "That is correct, soutaichou."

"Good, good..." Yamamoto said with a sigh, as he slowly stood up. "I hope you do realize that by arresting Kurotsuchi-taichou, you are stretching the limits of your authority, Soifon-taichou?"

Again, Soifon nodded. "I do, soutaichou. However given the severity of his crimes, I-"

"You are to release him." Yamamoto stated, cutting Soifon off before she could justify her actions.

"Release him?!" Soifon shouted, her composure completely broken. "But soutaichou, this man is responsible for more deaths than the ryoka have caused during the entire time that they have already spend in the Seireitei! He doesn't even show the slightest bit of remorse for his actions! Why should we allow a man like this to go unpunished for committing crimes against the Gotei?!"

"Because Kurotsuchi Mayuri is an official captain of the Gotei Thirteen, head of the research division, and approved by the Central Forty-Six themselves. Imprisoning him is an act of disrespect against the order of the Central Forty-Six." The head captain said, calmly but firmly.

Soifon stared at Yamamoto bewilderedly for a moment, before lowering her gaze again. "I am sorry, soutaichou. I should not have objected."

Yamamoto shook his head and walked over to the window in his office, facing away from Soifon. If there was just one thing that could not be said about Soifon, then it was that she was not professional. In all the decades that she had led the _onmitsukidou_, there had never been a time where her work was unsatisfactory to Yamamoto, or the Gotei in general. Soifon had all that Yamamoto hoped for in a captain: Professionalism, efficiency and seriousness. She might even be the best leader of the _onmitsukidou_ that that the Gotei had in centuries... but judging by this current situation, she might have started to forget the limits of her authority.

"Do not misunderstand, Soifon-taichou." Yamamoto said, still looking out of the window. "I myself am not particularly fond of Kurotsuchi-taichou and his general mindset – but what you need to realize is that despite his moral concepts – or rather, the lack thereof – this man is still the leader of the Gotei's research division, and very skilled at that. At the current time, he might just be irreplaceable to the Gotei... which is why we must be a bit more forgiving when dealing with him. The Central Forty-Six have already made it clear to me numerous times that they see no issue with the way that Kurotsuchi-taichou works. Do you understand, Soifon-taichou?" Yamamoto asked, now finally turning his head to look at Soifon again.

Before she answered, the captain of Squad Two hesitated for a moment. "...Yes, soutaichou. I will see to it that Kurotsuchi-taichou will be released as soon as possible."

"Ah, I think there is no hurry with that, Soifon-taichou." Yamamoto said, stroking his beard. "It is already very late for today – I am fairly certain that Kurotsuchi-taichou would not mind staying with your division for just this night."

Hesitantly, Soifon spoke up. "And what if there was... an accident during his stay at our division, soutaichou?" Soifon asked, and though she didn't let her face change at all, there was the hint of eagerness in her voice.

"I think an experienced captain such as him should have a strong resistance to accidents."  
Yamamoto knew what would happen- Soifon would not be allowed to exercise law, so she would make sure that the time Kurotsuchi did spend in her division would be as miserable as possible. She was quite innovative with a knife, he had been told. It was nothing Kurotsuchi could not quickly recover from, and a reminder, perhaps, that actions had consequences.

"Understood."

"Good then... now, before you leave, Soifon-taichou, I would like you to take a look at this report..." Yamamoto said, moving over to his desk, from which he took a folder containing a single sheet of paper.

"Soutaichou?" Soifon said quizzically. She would read the reports every night, before going to sleep- it would be nothing she wouldn't have read otherwise.

"It might be of interest to you. Then again, I will not tell you how to do your duties. Dismissed, taicho."

"Sir." She said, turning around, walking away, holding the report Yamamoto had handed her. Once she was out of the massive room where the soutaichou resided, she opened the folder the report was held in, looking at it curiously. It was odd, downright strange, for the venerable Yamamoto to make a suggestion like this- she would get any and all reports, and anything of importance to the commander of the executive militia would be sent right to her desk. Why on earth would the head captain make something as unheard of as a _subtle hint_- that is, subtle for somebody like him- that she ought to pay special attention to this report?

As she walked slowly down the street, she began to read the report. Fifty or so words in, she froze, as if struck by lightning, stopping dead in her tracks. Her hands began to tremble- this was… amazing. Outrageous. All things combined. In a flash, she slipped into shunpo, running as if to save her life.

She only stopped when she reached her room- her personal room, not her office where she so often ended up sleeping- her own room, neatly cleaned, decorated with a number of cat plushies and a small, comfortable bed- covered with a cat themed blanket, of course.  
Forcing her hands to stop shaking, she sat down on the floor cross legged, opening up the folder again, reading carefully through the report. She read it once, then once again. Then, when she had read every word through and through, looked at all the enclosed photographs, she read it a third time.

…_among the nefarious elements so far eluding our operative cells, an individual with a description matching that of the traitor, renegade and ex-captain_ Shihoin Yoruichi _has been sighted. Description originally confirmed by seventh seat Yamada Hantaro. Testimony is considered reliable, although Unohana-taicho refused proper interrogation- further interrogation of the two captured ryoka is recommended…_

Shihoin. Yoruichi. _Shihoin Yoruichi._ THAT Shihoin Yoruichi, the arch-traitor who walked out on her house, her honour, her division, the onmitsukidou and everyone she cared about for reasons unknown. The former commander, to whom she was successor- the one person she loathed more than anything. No wonder the head captain had given her a hint- she felt grateful now, grateful that he had given her this chance to prove, once and for all, what she would do to those who discarded their loyalties. She would hunt her down, capture her, read out all of her crimes to her- oh, and there were _many_ charges- and execute her, then and there. She would make her pay- she would regret ever being born; she'd die screaming with her fingers ripped off one joint at a time, her eyes pierced with white-hot iron pokers-

No. _Don't lose control of yourself._ She thought. There were so many emotions welling up, emotions she had been sure she was in control of- but this wasn't the time to get carried away. She would capture, sentence and kill this _criminal_, and she would do so in the due course of the law. No petty torture- even though she could hear, in her mind, her zanpakutou Suzumebachi viciously crying out for vengeance- just justice. She would kill Shihoin Yoruichi, and it would be righteous. This was personal indeed- and she would spare no expenses. She was back in the Gotei after all this time, and Soifon would find her or die trying.

Reaching to a button on her wall, next to her bed, she pressed it down hard. It was an emergency alarm, meant to summon the highest ranking officer available to her in case she was attacked. Within a minute, her third seat barged into the room.

"You could have been ten seconds faster." She said sharply.

"I apologize profusely, captain." Her third seat said, bowing low.

"I have a new order." Soifon said, her voice almost cracking- for once, in she was almost not in complete control of her emotions. "Set the entirety of the _onmitsukidou_, as well as all of second division, on the highest level of alert. I want full mobilization, _now_."

"Taicho!" Her third seat snapped, saluting. "I regret to inform you that the fukutaicho will not be available for it-"

"_Good_." Soifon said.

"May I ask the reason for this command, taicho?"

"We are hunting an S class priority target." Soifon said, forcing herself to sound calm. S class was the highest rank of threat to order in the Soul Society possible, which she knew was an overstatement- but this couldn't be underestimated. She _had_ to do this. "All restrictions are lifted. Search any division you need to, at any point- don't bother with warrants or division courtesies. This takes full priority in every way."

Her third seat nodded. "Yes, taichou." He turned around, ready to walk out, stopping himself at the last moment. "What about the interrogation of the ryoka we caught, Soifon-taicho?"

"The interrogation can wait!" Soifon snapped. "I said _full priority_, and I meant it- GO!"

"Yes!" Her third seat exclaimed. Within the hour, the entirety of the second division had been mobilized.

* * *

oOo

* * *

Elsewhere, in the tenth division, Shiba Isshin found himself unable to sleep – which could at least partially be attributed to the headache that Ichigo hitting him on the head with the hilt of his sword had caused. His son was here, in the soul society- his son! Rolling around in bed, he found himself unable to stop grinning. The boy had grown up to be a strong young man, stronger than Isshin had ever thought he would be – it was simply wonderful. Though on the other hand... it did pain Isshin that despite it all, Ichigo did not consider him his father. But on the other hand... Ichigo had last seen him something like fourteen or fifteen years ago. He had a right to be angry, he supposed- he probably couldn't even remember Isshin... which was easily more painful to think about than the fact that Ichigo did not consider him his father.

Isshin sighed. There was no point in getting all depressed over this. Isshin's goofy facade had helped him through the years after his return; it would also help him through this now. And once this all was over, he'd do whatever it takes to finally act as a father was supposed to, whether the Gotei approved of it or not.

"Isshin." Came a deep voice from his window. "I'm here. It's time to talk."

"Yeah, all right." He said, sitting up, putting his musings aside. "So, what's it you wanted to talk about, Yoruichi?"

"Plans, of course." Yoruichi said, hopping down on the floor in front of his bed. "You know Urahara – when he is involved, there is always plenty of planning."

"Plans, huh." Isshin grunted, scratching his head. "Does that mean that you're finally gonna tell me what exactly old bucket hat plans for? The two of you have definitely kept me and Kukaku in the dark for quite some time now..."

In the darkness, Isshin could see the silhouette of Yoruichi's cat form shaking it's head. "I'm afraid not, Isshin. The time for that just hasn't come yet... but it should be there soon enough. By the way, would you mind if I switched to my human form? It'd be a bit earlier to talk about everything this way."

"I actually would mind."

"How unlike you. Do you think that if you're seeing me naked in the dark, you'll be cheating on Masaki?" Yoruichi snorted.

"Not really. It is moreso a matter of somebody potentially walking in on us – I'd have an easier time explaining myself if I were to be found talking to a cat, than if I were to be found talking to a naked woman who bears a striking resemblance to the mysterious person that has been helping the ryoka." Isshin explained nonchalantly.

Despite not being able to see her well in the darkness, Isshin could perfectly imagine the surprised look on Yoruichi's face over his answer – cat or not. "Well, that's a good enough reason." She noted, her tone making it unclear as to whether she was even surprised or not. "So as I was saying... the time for you to learn what Urahara's plans are about is not here yet. All that you need to know for now is that our enemy will reveal himself soon."

"Enemy, huh..." Isshin grunted. "You mean the guy that's responsible for you, Urahara and Tessai getting exiled one hundred years ago? The guy that did these... things to Hirako and the others? This big, mysterious stranger that none of you can tell me or Kukaku about, because _reasons_? That enemy?"

"That's the one, yeah." Yoruichi said, and Isshin was sure that she was grinning as she did. "Don't worry, though – give it another week or so, and you'll know who it is."

"Whatever, whatever. Just tell me about these plans already." Isshin said, waving his hand dismissively.

Yoruichi chuckled. "Impatient as always... but you're right- enough of the chit chat. I guess I don't have to repeat to you why Ichigo is here?"

"'Course not. Kukaku already explained me that in detail... not to mention that some Squad Four kid that you kidnapped helped the Gotei figure out the details. He's here to rescue Byakuya's sister before she gets executed."

Yoruichi nodded. "Yes, exactly... and the Gotei knowing about this is our big problem right now. With Byakuya's and your Squad guarding the Senzaikyu, there is absolutely no chance that Ichigo and his friends will be able to get into the prison to get Rukia out. And that isn't even getting to the problem of Byakuya himself..."

"So how exactly do you want to get past that? And how do you even want to ensure that Byakuya's sister lives _after_ you have gotten her out of there?"

"Oh, ensuring her survival after the rescue is the easiest part of this all." Yoruichi remarked in a tone that made it quite clear that she was once again grinning. "To answer your first question, though: Ichigo and his friend, Tatsuki, are going to spend the next couple of days training to achieve Bankai. With that, it should be quite possible to get through the Senzaikyu's defenses."

Isshin stared at Yoruichi blankly. "Bankai?! Are you serious? But they only have their powers for a couple of months! How could you possibly achieve this?"

"You know that there is a method for them to do it."

"Urahara's method." Isshin growled. "You know, I don't exactly like the thought of my son being put into mortal danger from just his training alone."

"You are not exactly up to date, Isshin." Yoruichi remarked dryly. "It has been over one hundred years since Kisuke used this method to obtain his own Bankai – more than enough to get rid of the little quirks that the method still had when he used it. The only danger that Ichigo and Tatsuki will be facing are the ill wills of their Zanpakutou, and even those will pass with the time."

Isshin sighed with resignation. "I hope that you're right... from what you and Urahara told me about his Bankai, it sounded like this method needed a whole damn lot of fixing."

"Don't you worry. It'll work out."

"Yeah, yeah, I believe you... but still, even if those two do get their Bankai, it isn't really going to help them much against Byakuya. The guy had his own Bankai for several decades – with their newly-obtained Bankai, he'd cut the two of them up faster than you can say "stick up the ass". I don't exactly like the idea of that happening to my son when I have just met him for the first time in over ten years."

"Good that you mention that – because this is where you come in. What I will need to you to do is create a diversion: Something which causes an even bigger commotion that Ichigo and his friends have caused so far. Something which throws the entire Gotei into disarray, and forces them to withdraw as much of their forces from the Senzaikyu as possible. Even the captains. Once that is done, it will be an easy thing for Ichigo and the others to move in and rescue Rukia."

"Huh." Isshin managed to get out, quite dumbfounded over the ambitiousness of Yoruichi's plan. "So how exactly did you want to do that? And more importantly, as far as I know, your other little group has already been caught by Squad Two. How do you want to get them out of there?"

"They have been caught?!" Yoruichi exclaimed, her concern apparent in her tone.

"Yeah. Just earlier today. I hear they fought against the captain of Squad Twelve, Kurotsuchi Mayuri for a while, before they managed to escape him. They were captured by Squad Two shortly afterwards."

"Damn... this won't make things easier for you." Yoruichi mumbled.

"Uhh... don't you mean that it will make things less easy for _you_?" Isshin questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Actually, no. You see, the thing about my plan for a diversion is... that I don't have one. You will have to improvise – I myself will barely have any time to deal with this. I will need to supervise Ichigo and Tatsuki's Bankai training."

Isshin sighed. "So basically, it's like this: Free these kids from Squad Two, create a big-ass diversion, make sure that I don't get killed for turning against the Gotei. Anything else?"

"That about covers it." Yoruichi said.

"Damn, woman." Isshin mumbled. "All right, I'll do it- but only because you make such an adorable kitty."

"…thanks."

"Oh, and great justice and all that." Isshin said dismissively. "Don't you worry- I ain't about to let any of you down. And put in a good word for me with my boy, will you?"

"That will depend on how you perform." Yoruichi said dryly, slipping out into the night before Isshin could come up with a witty retort.

Isshin lay down again, wide awake. Well, he had his work cut out for him…

* * *

oOo

* * *

Tatsuki, half asleep, was sitting in what appeared to be a natural Jacuzzi of some kind. It really was amazing- it was warm, soothing, and it was somehow rapidly healing her wounds. She was so _comfortable_- and it was a damn welcome change from the running, hurting and bleeding she had done the last two days. Ichigo was sitting across from her, a few yards away, seeming only slightly less comfortable than she. Not even once since returning had Ichigo even hinted at what exactly happened to him while he had just ran off – and after some time, Tatsuki had simply stopped bothering to think about it. The question was still on her mind, but she figured that asking Ichigo about it anytime soon was just about pointless.

The two of them were entirely naked- Yoruichi's idea, to nobody's surprise- but neither could care at this point. It was wondrous what a near death experience and some really intense pain could do to kill your sense of modesty.

"Mmm…" she mumbled. "How'd they even build this place? No, screw it- I don't wanna know." She stretched out, feeling a distinct lack of pain. She touched her chest, running her fingers down where Kenpachi had cut her. There was a nasty, red scar running from hip to shoulder, ending just before her crotch- but it didn't really hurt... not anymore.

"I don't even feel sore anymore." Ichigo agreed. "This is… really convenient. I guess it pays off to have an ex-captain on your team."

"All right, you two." It was Yoruichi, who, to their shock, was actually wearing clothes; skin tight black pants, and an orange jacket of some kind. "Get out of the pool- it's time to start training. No time to lose, you two- we have three days to do this, so let's make the most of it."

Obediently, Tatsuki climbed out of the pool, grabbing a nearby towel, beginning to dry herself off. For some reason, Ichigo wasn't right behind her, she noticed.

"What's the holdup?" She said, looking at him. Ichigo, oddly enough, sported a blush, looking everywhere but right at Tatsuki.

"You're- you're uh, uhm-"

"What are you, fourteen?" Tatsuki chuckled. "Get some perspective- we almost died just recently, and we're about to train so we can go almost get ourselves killed again- this is no time to be modest."

"…fine." Ichigo grumbled, crawling out, hastily reaching for a towel, wrapping it around his waist speedily. Tatsuki just chuckled- it was pretty funny how he still found the time to be awkward.

"Alright then." Yoruichi said, pulling out two roughly human-shaped white dolls from under a large cloth, each about as large as Ichigo and Tatsuki respectively. "Do you remember what I said about Bankai?"

"It releases our full potential? Sorta like some Dragonball-ish powerup or something?" Ichigo said.

"Roughly put, yes. But as you guessed before, there is a trade-off." She held up the dolls. "Putting your zanpakutou into one of these will force it to materialize, from which point you have a right to challenge it for its full power. If you fail, however, you could piss your zanpakutou off for years to come- or, in the worst case, end up losing your powers altogether."

"A hell of a tradeoff." Tatsuki commented.

Yoruichi shook her head. "No, that's not the trade-off."

"Oh, _delightful_." Ichigo grumbled.

"The trade-off is that your Bankai will be weaker. It can eventually become as strong as a normal Bankai, but it will take much longer- fifty years, perhaps. Then again, the both of you could live to be well over hundred rather easily..."

"…so how many people have this?" Tatsuki asked. "I mean, if it's super rare…"

"Currently, twelve of the thirteen captains have one. Several strong, independent warlords out in the rukongai are said to have it as well, and a few more individuals are known to have one, but it is exceedingly rare to attain it."

"All right, so the odds are impossible." Ichigo nodded. "Obviously, that means we just have to make it possible."

It sounded dumb, Tatsuki thought, but there was something extraordinary about how Ichigo had said it- it was as if their success would be a given, that failure was not an option. It was encouraging.

"They're not as rare as people would have you believe." Yoruichi assured them. "Back in the old days, it used to be only noble families had them- mainly because their families had the best reiatsu, the best genes, the best education and the best food. Things changed since, but they created a myth that only nobles could achieve it- and when this was proven false, the myth that it is ridiculously rare."

"So it's not super rare?" Tatsuki asked.

"It is quite rare." Yoruichi shot back, "but not as rare as some people think. You can achieve it, and technically speaking, every shinigami can- it's only that few manage to achieve it, and even then, actually manage to make it grow to its fullest potential."

"So what do we do to train?"

"It's pretty straightforward- stab your blade into the doll, and fight your zanpakutou into submission."

"This is one of those things that sound really easy in theory, isn't it?" Ichigo said. "So what will you be doing?"

"I'll be making sure that the training goes smooth, and that nobody notices this place. This is between you and your zanpakutou- there is nothing I can do about this."

"Well, let's go, then." Tatsuki said, pulling out her sword.

"No point in wasting time." Ichigo agreed. As one, the two of them stabbed their swords into one doll each. For a second, nothing happened- was this all bogus?- then there was a sudden glow, and before them stood the two zanpakutou, Zangetsu and Raitora.

"Your zanpakutou is an old man who hasn't cut his hair in decades, with sunglasses from the eighties?" Tatsuki sniggered.

"You're one to talk- yours looks like a prop for some old samurai movie of some kind. And what's up with the tiger mask and the orange suit of armor?"

"I take offense to that." Raitora said, its voice deep and grim.

"Man, your zanpakutou looks and sounds even more butch than mine- I bet it's secretly a girl behind that mask." Ichigo said, grinning.

"Bet taken, dummy." Tatsuki said.

"Enough chatter." Said Zangetsu. "I have been summoned here before you, Ichigo- but do you dare think you have earned my power yet?"

"My sentiments are similar." Raitora concurred. "Tatsuki, you have progressed- but you are a thousand years too early to even think of laying claim to my power. I will have to discipline you, foolish child."

"Oh, so it's a fight?" Tatsuki said, clacking her knuckles together. "I am okay with that."

"Bring it, old man." Ichigo said, grinning. Despite himself, he found himself enjoying the thought of a good fight.

After a couple of seconds where no words was spoken, the both spirits nodded simultaneously. Then, at the same time, they both manifested their weapon forms – Ichigo's massive sword, and Tatsuki's daggers – and threw them up in the air. As the weapons reached their highest point, there was a bright flash of white light – and with the flash, an enormous amount of various kinds of swords, daggers, and similar weapons seemed to spread from the originals, which proceeded to cover almost the entire floor of the cave in all kinds of weapons.

"Then let us begin our training." Zangetsu stated.

"Find your blades among all these – find your Bankai. Find it, and defeat us, if you want to achieve it!" Raitora added fiercely, its voice thundering throughout the entire cave.

* * *

oOo

* * *

It all simply was grating, Byakuya thought, as he headed towards the head captain's office. As if having to work together with this sad excuse for a nobleman and captain Shiba Isshin wasn't already bad enough, the fool had, after he had secured Kurosaki Ichigo, acted careless enough for the ryoka's associates to free him from the barracks of Squad Ten – and now, no trace was to be found of either of them. In many ways, it was still a mystery to Byakuya why Shiba Isshin was still a captain of the Gotei Thirteen. As far as Byakuya knew, Shiba Isshin had never during his entire time as a captain displayed any of the traits that a captain should have – aside from the obligatory Bankai, of course. The man was lazy, irresponsible, unreliable and, above all, completely lacked the dignity that nobility should have (though the same was true for most of the Shiba clan).

In fact, what better proof for Shiba's incompetence was there than what had led to his temporary banishment several decades ago? While Byakuya did not know the details himself, the basic events were well-known amongst the noble clans: A feud between the Shiba clan and another noble house, started for unclear reasons, which ended with Shiba Isshin killing a member of the opposing noble family. With murder between noble families being a major crime, a punishment was inevitable. With Shiba Isshin being a captain, an execution or even prison were easily out of the question, so that the Central Forty-Six ultimately decided to banish the nobleman to the world of the living, and seal his shinigami powers. Justice was served, and the law was upheld.

But as the years went on, no replacement for the captain of Squad Ten could be found: None of the shinigami that were considered to be promoted should they achieve Bankai (which to Byakuya's slight surprise had even included his own vice-captain, Abarai Renji) did manage to do so. Even the third-seat of Squad Ten, Hitsugaya Toshiro, a prodigy like the Soul Society only saw it once every century, had to this very day not managed to achieve Bankai. As time went on, the Gotei got increasingly more distraught in finding a new captain for Squad Ten, until one day, about fifteen years ago, the inevitable came: As per the Gotei's request, the Central Forty-Six lifted Shiba Isshin's banishment, and the man was retrieved from the world of the living, with his powers restored.

But even so, the trouble concerning this disgrace of a nobleman had not ended. Even though Byakuya had at the time not really paid much attention to the reinstating of the new and old captain of Squad Ten, being a captain himself, he still heard some bits in regards to Shiba Isshin's own opinion in the matter. Apparently, when the representatives of the Gotei had come to retrieve him, he had originally not wanted to leave the world of the living for whatever reason, refusing to do so until he was forced. And even then, back at Soul Society, the nobleman still caused trouble by deciding to go by another name than "Shiba" for a while – a name that Byakuya never bothered to find out, and that most of the Gotei never got to hear. After a while however, the captain of Squad Ten gave in to the pressure put on him by the Central Forty-Six, and went by "Shiba Isshin" again.

Of course, the noble family which the Shiba clan had been in a feud with was beyond enraged by the entire turn of events, but no matter how much they protested, nothing was changed – the word of the Central Forty-Six was law, after all. Shiba Isshin was the captain of Squad Ten once more, and his original punishment was all but forgotten. While Byakuya himself was not happy with this all, either, he never objected, or questioned the decisions that were made. His opinion was irrelevant. It did not matter.

At times like this however, when Shiba Isshin's incompetence became blatantly apparent, he could not help but to wonder if the Gotei's decision to take this course of action to make sure that Squad Ten had a captain... but of course, he would never speak up against the law. After all, the law was the law, and the law was everything.

Pushing aside his unimportant musings, Byakuya focused on reality once more. He now stood at the door to the head captain's office. He had been called here by Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai himself via a note – a note that said little more than that the head captain wanted to talk to him. While Byakuya couldn't possibly fathom what the head captain would want of him, he obviously still followed the order. Authority was authority.

After his knocking got a response in the form of a muffled, but clear "Enter!", Byakuya opened the door, and stepped into the office, where he found the head captain sitting by his desk.

"You called for me, soutaichou?" Byakuya said, bowing in front of Yamamoto.

The head captain looked up from his paperwork, and gave Byakuya a calculating look. "Yes, Kuchiki-taichou... I did call for you. Please, sit down."

Quietly, Byakuya followed the order, and waited for Yamamoto to continue. "I assume that you too are aware of the ryoka's intentions by now, Kuchiki-taichou?"

"I do, soutaichou. The ryoka, one of which has been confirmed to be the former substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo, have been confirmed to have infiltrated the seireitei with the goal to-" Against his will, Byakuya found himself hesitating – hesitating to say the obvious, to voice the one thing that has been tormenting his mind for weeks now. How could something so simple be so hard? Why did he find himself to say something as simple as that which was on his mind?

"-to prevent the execution of Kuchiki Rukia." Byakuya finally finished the sentence, after what had felt to him like an eternity in which his inner feelings were an open book.

Yamamoto nodded. "That is correct... Kuchiki Rukia is the key to this all. For this reason, I have decided to send a request to the Central Forty-Six to push the date of the execution forward as much as possible. As the head of the Kuchiki clan, I thought that you have the right to know of this first."

Byakuya remained silent. It had been predictable. The sooner the execution was over with, the sooner justice was served, the sooner this entire craze would end, and the Gotei could focus all of its forces on capturing Kurosaki Ichigo and the other ryoka. And yet, despite the logic of it all, despite the fact that Byakuya had outright expected this... something inside of him felt as if he had lost his footing, as if he had been plunged into an abyss.

"If I may make a request, soutaichou..." Byakuya said, the words coming out of his mouth before his mind could consider them "I would like to offer my services as well as those of my Squad to carry out the execution. Should it prove itself to be necessary, I could even perform the act myself."

Silence followed his words, as Yamamoto gave Byakuya a silent, calculating look. Byakuya almost felt like adding, 'I am already sending her into her death, so I might as well do it myself' to his words, but decided against it. It would have simply been undignified.

There was no law that would speak against Byakuya doing this – if anything, other members of his clan would even welcome it if he as the leader were to execute the criminal which had brought shame upon the household. Honor would be served, and Byakuya could at last find his comfort in committing seppuku.

"Your request is denied, Kuchiki-taichou." Yamamoto finally said, his tone blunt.

"But-!"

"Denied." The head captain repeated, this time with more emphasis. "Your duties will be to guard the senzaikyu, and nothing else, Kuchiki-taichou. There is no need for you to make this harder for yourself than it already is."

"...Yes, soutaichou." Byakuya said quietly, but not without a hint of relief in his voice. In the end, it didn't even matter if Byakuya himself executed Rukia or not, he supposed... the end result would still be the same. His sister would die, and the law would be upheld, as it had to be. After all, the law was the law, and the law was everything...

* * *

oOo

* * *

Zaraki Kenpachi let out a long, tired yawn. Since the weather in the seireitei had recently been rather warm and sunny, he had taken the liberty of sitting himself down under a tree in the area of the Squad Eleven barracks, and take a good rest together with Yachiru. With half of the ryoka captured, and the other half seemingly having completely vanished, there simply was nothing else left to keep Kenpachi interested in all the chaos that was going on among the Gotei. Of course, he could always just challenge some of his Squad members to a fight, but every single one of those bastards already long since knew that they stood absolutely no chance against Kenpachi – and so did he. No, there was just no point in fighting any of those guys.

It really seemed like all the fun that these ryoka had brought him was already over – and it was just a fucking shame. From what Kenpachi had heard, the other two ryoka – that is, the two that he had not cut up – had been able to defeat some Squad Seven guy, Renji, kill that Squad Five four-eyes Aizen, and even overpower Mayuri... but of course, those two just had to take a completely different route through the seireitei, which didn't even bring them close to the area of Squad Eleven. And now, those two were locked up by those Squad Two ninjas... just his fucking luck. Kenpachi would have given anything to fight the other two ryoka as well, but of course, there was no way that Soifon woman would let them go for that.

While the two ryoka kids that Kenpachi had cut up had been far from boring, they still hadn't lasted long enough to make this fun – it was just like they had fun with denying Kenpachi his own. Maybe if they got ten more years to train, then they'd be able to give him a proper fight, but like this?

It was just annoying. Kenpachi just about never got an opportunity to fight a strong opponent, one who could stand up against his entire strength, and even prove himself to be a challenge... of course, there were the other captains, but those never actually agreed to fight him, for whatever reason. Sometimes, could not help but to wish that he himself would get a good enough reason to fight any of these guys...

Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by a shadow falling onto him – somebody was blocking out the sun for him, which was not exactly an advisable thing. Annoyed, Kenpachi slowly opened his eyes, and sure enough: Some figure was standing in front of him, though it was impossible to make out who it was with the sun behind them.

"I hope ya got a good enough reason for standing there, punk." Kenpachi growled, getting up.

"Oh, I think I do have a good enough reason to talk to you, _Kenpachi_." The oddly calm response came – in the voice of a person that Kenpachi would always recognize instantly.

"Oh. It's you." The captain of Squad Eleven grumbled, as he now could finally make out the appearance of the person in front of him – who, as to be expected, turned out to be the captain of Squad Four, Unohana Retsu.

Kenpachi only barely acknowledged her presence at first, lazily staring into space with a bored look on his face.

"Whyn't you go play somewhere else, _Yachiru_?" Kenpachi said firmly, after a small while, stressing the little girl's name with an aside glance to Unohana.

Yachiru opened her mouth to reject, but a look into Kenpachi's face shut her up before she could even say anything. Without another word, the little girl hurried off, leaving the two captains alone. "So what d'ya want, eh?"

"You caused quite a stir recently." Unohana said, smiling, and there was a chiding tone to her speech. No use in being subtle- Zaraki Kenpachi had all the subtlety of a particularly blunt mallet.

"What, cutting down a tower or two?" Kenpachi said. "They should build 'em stronger."

"You let the ryoka escape."

Kenpachi shrugged. "Gimme a break. They was broken down- they weren't going to go anywhere. My job's to fight, not carry weaklings around."

"You really ought to be more careful." Unohana said. "The Gotei will only tolerate disobedience so far."

"Izzat supposed to be a threat?" Kenpachi rumbled.

"Think of it as a friendly warning. It isn't I you should be concerned about- but the central Forty-Six might one day stop looking favourably on your talent for mayhem."

Kenpachi spat. "The central forty-six can go sod themselves. The only way they'd ever fire me was if I made 'em look bad and they couldn't cover it up- they give sick freaks like Kurotsuchi a job, but they can't handle a bit of chaos? Killin' people's what I do- if they want subtle, they got their second division lapdogs for that." He stood up, his haori falling down behind him- it was quite torn- looking at her intently. "But you ain't here to tell me to play nice, now are ya?"

"No, I am here to treat your wounds." Unohana said, still smiling faintly. "You wouldn't come to the hospital yourself, so I figured it was best I find you myself.

"Oh." Kenpachi said. "Oh yeah, right. I kinda forgot- I needed a drink, and I ended up having lots of 'em, and I forgot all about it."

It would have been hard to believe, had it been anyone else- he had a pretty large gash, running down his chest, almost down to the thigh, but Kenpachi was known for his resilience- pain seemed to be more of an inconvenience than anything else to him.

"Sit up, and take that shirt off." Unohana said firmly. Kenpachi complied, and slid his torn shihakusho jacket off. Gently, Unohana began tending to his wounds. She'd done it many times- it was almost a routine by now. Carefully, she applied antiseptics and then bandages. He was probably not going to keep still long enough for it to be effective, but it was better than nothing.

Finally, she had wrapped the last stretch of cloth around Kenpachi's muscular chest, and she had finished.

"There." She said. "Better now?"

"I didn't need no bandages in the first place, woman." He grumbled, but his heart wasn't into it- just complaint for the sake of complaint. She smiled. It was so like him. "You get back to yer hospital."

"I will, Zaraki-taicho." She picked up what medical supplies were left, and put it into a bag, turning around to leave. "Take care, Kenpachi." She said, smiling at him. He didn't smile back- then again, he never did. Quietly, she walked away.

Kenpachi stretched around uncomfortably. He had a hard time telling that woman off- mostly because she was who she was. He wanted her; to fight her day and night until he couldn't stand- but that wasn't an option these days. He grumbled. Her visits always left him feeling half glad, half sour.

"Yo, Kenpachi!"

Kenpachi looked up. Very few people called him just 'Kenpachi'- and one of them was the bearded idiot in front of him.

"Shiba." He said, reaching for his torn shihakusho jacket. "What're you here for?" He was blunt, but he didn't dislike the captain. Sure, he was a nobleman- although Kenpachi had his suspicions that secretly he wasn't, since he didn't seem to have a stick up his ass, or think he was better than everyone else- but though Kenpachi didn't particularly think of most anyone as a 'friend', he wasn't unfriendly with Shiba Isshin. Good lad- he'd started in eleventh, worked himself up to captain, and more importantly, he'd sometimes offer to spar with him. He made for a good workout when he got serious.

"Can't a man visit his best buddy for no reason?" Isshin grinned, holding up a can of saké.

"Don't be gettin' all buddy-buddy with me." Kenpachi grumbled. "I'll take some saké, though."

"I knew you'd see it my way!" Isshin beamed.

A significant number of drinks later, Kenpachi was enjoying an alcohol-induced haze, which rated fairly high on his scale of things which felt good that wasn't fighting. He didn't know why Isshin was here, and he didn't care- if he wanted to give him free booze, let him.

"So Kenpachi, buddy," Isshin said, downing another shot, "I got some… advice for ya."

"Don't need no advice." Kenpachi grumbled, taking another swig.

"You're gonna like this, though."

"Yeah?"

"What if I told you there was a way to really piss off the higher-ups, and probably get you to fight some captains?"

This got his attention. "Keep talkin'."

"There's just this particular barracks I noticed has _such_ poor security." Isshin noted. "Really, anyone could just waltz in and break it."

"Yeah?" Kenpachi said suspiciously. He was up to something.

"It's this little place in one of the holding cells second division operates." Isshin said, downing another drink.

"And why'd I wanna do that?"

"'Cause it holds two ryoka- the ones what you didn't get to fight before."

Really now. _That_ was more like it. "And ain't bustin' them out treason?"

"Two small time ryoka? At a time like this? A body could just say it was by accident- and they could believe you, too."

"And what was that about fighting captains?"

"Well, I happen to know that two days from now, Komamura-taicho will be patrolling quite near that place. Assuming the worst, he might attack a potential, completely innocent, cell-busting captain."

"No word games!" Kenpachi sneered. "I got ya, though…" Pissing off the higher ups was also one of the things that rated fairly high on his scale of things which felt good that wasn't fighting, and the idea of sticking it to one of those holier-than-thou pricks was real tempting. Not as tempting as the idea of fighting a Bankai, but he could have both- so why not?

"I could grab Ikkaku and Yumichika right now, have 'em show me the way." He said. There'd probably be some kind of problems- "breaking the rules" and bullshit like that, but who cared? He'd get a good fight out of it.

"Not so quick." Isshin said. "Two days from now. Not sooner. That's all I ask in exchange for this nice, hot tip between buddies."

"All right." Kenpachi said, emptying the bottle. "Throw in a good spar right now, and I'm game."

Isshin grinned. "Consider it done."

* * *

oOo

* * *

The floor was covered with corpses, the air was reeking of blood and the stench of decaying bodies... and Aizen Sosuke found himself oddly bored.

It had only been yesterday that he, Gin and Tosen had together done that which Aizen had wanted to do for many, many years now: Give to the Central Forty-Six the kind of punishment that they deserved, and leave their corpses to rot in their parliament building. Every single one of them was dead by now, and it wouldn't be for another few days before they would be found – or rather, before Aizen let them be found. For the time being, the parliament served as his hideout until his plans could advance to the next stage. After all, what better place was there to hide than the most secure place in all of the seireitei? While admittedly, rotting corpses did not exactly make for the best ambience, the fact that they were the remains of the Central Forty-Six more than made up for it.

But even so, the satisfaction over this execution could only last so long. Aizen's plan was far from being finished, and Gin and Tosen retaining their cover was elemental to it, so that they two had to leave him not too long after the killing had ended. Aizen had been alone with his mind ever since – which he probably would have minded a bit less if right now, the only thing he could do was being patient. Of course, he also had to keep up the illusion he had created for the parliament's guards, and everybody who entered the area – but that was an absolutely trivial issue, considering his strength.

Any person that would enter the chamber of the Central Forty-Six would be under the impression of finding them in the middle of a heated debate over various political issues – taxes, relations between noble houses, strength of the various Squads... in short, all sorts of things that had nothing to do with the people living out in the Rukongai, and nothing out of the ordinary for the Central Forty Six. Even if one were to step on a corpse, they would not notice it, all thanks to the illusions cast by Aizen's shikai.

Then again however, the parliament guards rarely dared to interrupt any of the meetings that were being held, so that the illusions were for the most part little more than a safety measure – which made it all the more surprising to Aizen when he did sense one of the guards approaching the room, walking at a pace which left little doubt as to where he was going. Before long, the guard had reached the room and entered it, of course without even realizing what was in front of him.

His curiosity awakened, Aizen walked over to the seat nearest to the door, and sat down, becoming, as far as the guard was concerned, one of the members of the Central Forty-Six. As expected, the guard quickly approached Aizen, laying down a letter in front of him. "A hell butterfly just delivered this. It is a note from Yamamoto-soutaichou."

Aizen nodded silently, and the guard turned around to leave. When he reached the door, the man turned around once more, as if he had just noticed something odd, something out of the ordinary... but then he just opened the door, and left anyway.

Slightly bemused, Aizen stared after him. For just a moment, it seemed as if the man had gotten a glimpse of reality, of what really was in this room... or at least, part of what was in this room. While the illusions that his Shikai allowed him to cast were without a doubt near-perfect, there were still flaws that occurred with them... such as completely deceiving all five senses. Seeing, hearing, tasting, feeling and smelling: Out of those five senses, the ones that needed to be deceived the most were seeing, hearing and feeling. Tasting and smelling things on the other hand were but a minor detail to an otherwise perfect creation – a detail that Aizen rarely bothered with, and was consequently not too skilled with it, either.

Without a doubt, the stench in the room somehow managed to get through to the guard, letting him smell the blood and decay... not that it mattered, though. A guard having smelled something unusual was far from enough to blow his cover. The man would probably forget about the oddity in just a few more minutes.

Finally averting his gaze from the door, Aizen took he note that the guard delivered, and skimmed over it. The vast majority of the letter consisted of Yamamoto just using fancy words to convey the need to move forward the date of Kuchiki Rukia's execution... well, that could be arranged easily enough. And of course, it would fit in with his plans, too...

But that was not the most interesting part about the note. No, Yamamoto's reasoning as to _why_ the execution date should be moved forward was easily more interesting. Apparently, two of the ryoka had been identified as the former substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo, and former captain Shihoin Yoruichi, the former of which had been able to escape the Squad Ten barracks, despite being looked after by the Squad's captain himself... and then there was the other group of ryoka, which, in addition to being suspected to have murdered him (a part of the letter which caused Aizen to smirk when he read it), managed to overpower the captain of Squad Twelve enough to force him to use Bankai... thought this group was captured now.

While the escape of Kurosaki Ichigo could most likely be attributed to Yoruichi, Aizen could not help but to be impressed by the unexpected competence that Urahara's lackeys had been showing. They were capable, more capable than they should be... capable enough to get Aizen curious.

He might need to pay these ryoka a visit.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**  
Well then, no fighting or any kind of violence this chapter - sorry for that (though I do believe that this is not something that one should apologize for. . .). In any case, the next chapter will have all the more violence and fighting to make up for it, so thou may looketh forward to that. . . or something.

And now:

* * *

**LE OBLIGATORY STAR WARS OMAKE TIEM!**

As Matsumoto Rangiku walked out from her office, her workday finally complete- what _would_ her big baby of a captain do without her?- she passed said big baby's office. She could hear a muffled sound.

She sighed. It was happening again, she just knew it. Quietly, she slid the door to his room open.

As she walked in, she could hear voices from the TV.

"If you're not with me… you're my enemy!" An overdramatic voice, which sounded so angsty it might as well have belonged to an Uchiha, exclaimed.

"Only a Sith deals an absolute!" A second voice came, sounding equally as dramatic. Funny- if she wasn't mistaken, that _was_ an absolute statement in itself.

Oh yeah, it was happening again.

"Anakin, no!" Isshin sobbed as he watched the movie, for what Rangiku was sure was the one hundredth and sixty-fourth time. It was kind of sad that she kept count. "You were supposed to be the chosen one, not evil! WHYYYY?!" Isshin cried, sounding as if he was going through a personal tragedy.

"Taicho, you _knew_ this was coming since the moment you watched the first three films." She said flatly. "How can you still be upset?"

"Shut up!" He wailed. "You just don't understand all my feels! Oh, Anakin! WHYYY?!"

"Just ignore those horrible prequels and consider them non-canon. That's what I do."

Isshin gasped. "How dare you!"

"Everyone knows the prequels suck. Get over it."

"NO! Isshin shouted. "They're masterfully directed, and the acting is so solid, and look how pretty all of those CGI effects are! Those are totally worthy successors to the world's best sci fi franchise!"

"In the same way M. Night Shyamalan is a director of good movies?" Rangiku said, tilting her head sardonically. Few people knew how to tilt their head in a sardonic way, but Rangiku had mastered this art.

"You just don't understand the creative genius of George Lucas!" Isshin protested. "Like not having Han Solo shoot first- that was brilliant editing!"

"…what is _wrong_ with you?" Rangiku groaned. "Besides, everyone knows Star Wars isn't the best sci fi series- that's Doctor Who."

"BLASPHEMY!" Isshin shouted. "THOSE WORDS ARE BLASPHEMY! DO NOT BLASPHEME! DO NOT BLASPHEME!"

"If you calm down, and stop gushing over a crappy, overplayed and overhyped franchise, I'll read some of Leia's lines. You can be Luke."

Instantly, Isshin calmed down. "Yesma'am!"

Rangiku sighed. Why couldn't she have a _normal_ captain, who liked roleplay with actual sex in it?


End file.
